Chronicles of My Shinobi's Way
by Naruto6023
Summary: What if during the second part of Chunin Exams when Orochimaru & Team 7 fought, Itachi & Kisame interfered? What if it was a plan all along to awaken Naruto's bloodline? How great the consequences would be? NarutoxHarem Warning-Incest!
1. The Judgement Day

**Edit: ****5-22-2012**

**Warnings****- Alright, before you start reading this story, let me make some things crystal clear. This fic is a bloodline Naruto fic, though not overpowered, and contains incest. If you're repelled by that or plain disgusted by it, I suggest you leave. This is also a harem fic, again, just to warn you (NarutoxKushinaxHarem). Oh, another thing, Hinata is in the harem, and I'm sure most probably you're a Hinata-hater, if that's the case, leave. Although you can still try reading this considering there are many readers who like this story except the Hinata part. So if you can ignore it, go ahead. :)**

**If you're an experienced reader, then most probably you're looking for quality stuff. This first chapter, which I edited on '22-5-2012' previously was poorly written due to me being a new author a year ago. You may find the writing style of this chapter up to your satisfactory level, but be warned that the next few chapters have not been edited yet and you will find several spelling as well as grammatical mistakes in them. So, I don't want you to complain about those mistakes in the coming future chapters (till about ch 5, after that my writing skills started to pick up). Also, in these first few chapters, you will notice several cliché facts, poor character developments and some other facts which may make you roll your ****eyes ****_if _****you're**** an experienced reader.**

**If you can be patient enough to read through those chapters, then you're in for a ride and you'll know why this story got _this _****many ****reviews ****_despite _****containing ****incest,**** large harem and Hinata ****in it.**

**I know that after these first few paragraphs, I've probably lost about 70% of the readers who were willing to give this story a try, but it's better that I be honest with you readers rather than having to bear some heated flames later on.**

**And if you're one of those remaining 30% readers, you wouldn't be disappointed by this story- as a _whole_, that much I'm confident in. ^_^**

**The story starts during the second part of the Chunin exams after Anko explains the rules. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1-The Judgement Day**

After passing the first exam, the contestants gathered in front of the training ground 44 nicknamed "Forest of Death." Most of them were nervous while one particular blonde was pretty ecstatic for the upcoming test.

"Hey Sakura-chan! Don't you worry one little bit, I'm sure we're gonna breeze through the second examination. I'll protect you with my life!," said our blond knucklehead as enthusiastically as ever, his spirits undwindled by the mysterious and a dangerous aura that the dense foliage in front of him seemed to be emitting.

"Don't shout you idiot! We don't want to face extra competition because of your blabbering," hissed Sakura angrily as she bonked him over his head.

"But Sakura-chan, I-," Naruto argued before he was interrupted...

"Will you quit it dobe! Seriously you're such a loser," muttered Sasuke in a forced tone, his voice as calm as usual.

"Shut up teme! I was only trying to lighten the mood here. And atleast I'm not scared of that forest like you ," growled Naruto, quite annoyed with the 'I'm better than you attitude' of the last Uchiha.

"Hn! Watch what you say loser. I'm an Uchiha, an elite who has already awakened the sharingan at such a young age. You don't even have a bloodline limit," said Sasuke smugly with an arrogant smirk making Naruto grit his teeth.

"Yeah! Watch what you say Naruto-baka, Sasuke-kun is way better than you!" said Sakura as she defended her crush making the blond sigh inwardly. It was always like this way, he would try to make some kind of a conversation with his teammates and it always resulted in backfiring at him.

_'And when we need teamwork the most...'_, thought the blond jinchuriki bitterly before he retorted back; he couldn't just have his rival always have the last words after all.

"I'll show you that I'm way better than you Sasuke. Just you wait, I'm gonna pass the second exam like creating a shadow clone. This forest of... err, whatever it is...it doesn't scare me one little bit!" said Naruto loudly while thumping his thumb at his puffed out chest, a determined smile on his face.

WHOOSH!

Suddenly a kunai whipped past Naruto's face cutting his cheek slightly, the sound of the metallic weapon cutting through air reverberating in his ear drums. The blonde yelped in surprise when he felt the tip of a kunai against his neck, a soft tongue licking the blood off his cheek.

"Hm... your blood tastes good gaki," whispered Anko Mitarashi in a seductive tone tone, a sadistic smirk on her face as she had appeared behind him with a shunshin. Naruto though had his eyes wide, her warm hands on his cheek combined with her seductive soft voice made a certain part of his anatomy twitch in response, heat reaching his cheeks as he gulped in a little bit of fear.

'_This proctor is crazy! Just looking at that smirk scares the shit out of me...'_, thought Naruto, honestly creeped out as he tried to get out of her grip. However, it would seem she was holding him to herself with an iron grip, her generous bust squishing against his back making his blush grow darker in shade.

"Be careful what you say genin-chan, these five days may be the worst days of your life," said a smiling Anko loudly making the other contestants gulp in fear while Naruto's expression darkened upon hearing her.

"I doubt that, I've had worse days in my life. Besides...I entered this forest when I was six and spent a month in there due to the orphanage kicking me out...so scare other contestants with this bullshit!," whispered Naruto a bit angrily, his voice low so that only the snake mistress could hear him.

Anko's face though saddened after hearing him. She knew he held the Kyuubi, she was one of the few people who didn't see him as the prisoner, rather its jailer. She knew what the boy must feel everyday, having to fight that demon to keep it at bay every second of his life, having to withstand the glares of the pathetic villagers, having to be made fun of his dream of becoming hokage. After all, she too held the curse seal thanks to that snake bastard, having nightmares everyday, sometimes the curse seal acting on its own sending bolts of pain throughout her body, having to be called names like 'Snake Whore' or 'Snake Bitch'...it hurt very much and she knew that pain with every fiber of her being.

Anko wore the mask of some physcotic kunoichi enjoying torturing people, but that was far from truth though because every time she interrogated someone, she would just imagine the face of Orochimaru in front of her and would start torturing like there was no tomorrow.

She always followed Naruto whenever she had time, helping him from the mob of villagers who would beat and pick on him, but by transforming into an Anbu. She feared that he would treat her like every villager, so keeping distance from him was the best choice she could come up with...and besides, even if she wanted to meet him, she couldn't. The hokage had prohibited from meeting him after all, along with her other three best friends. She liked the boys attitude, never giving up, never backing down from any challenge, having the strength to pick himself up whenever he failed. He was the only inspiration for her that kept her going, or she would have committed suicide a long time ago from pain the villagers caused her. More importantly, the snake sanin's apprentice along with her friends were the only one who knew of the mask the boy wore, not even the sandaime knew about it.

Also, over the years she had developed a crush on the boy, so latching onto any chance she got of any physical contact with him was in her 'Must Do' checklist, like one at the present.

"Naruto-kun, you should drop that mask of yours, you cannot fool me," whispered Anko letting her mask slip for a second making Naruto freeze at the spot, his eyes widening.

"Wha-," said the blond in pure shock that someone had seen through him.

" I said dro-," she was interrupted when a Kusa nin appeared behind her, surprising her that a genin was able to sneak up to a prodigy jounin like her.

"I think this is your kunai proctor-san," muttered the Kusa nin with a hiss in his voice returning the kunai to Anko with his tongue in a sickly manner making her grin back at him, her mask back on her face.

"Why thank you genin-san. Oh, and if you want to live...you might wanna reconsider sneaking up on me again," said Anko in an sickly sweet tone, inwardly fuming that this brat had interrupted their conversation.

"My apologies...proctor-san" muttered the Kusa nin as he slipped back away. On the other hand, Naruto was lost in his own thoughts.

'_How? How could she have seen through me so easily. This is insane, we have only met. Even jiji doesn't know about it.'_

After the Kusa nin went back to his team, Anko leaned forward to whisper in his ear, "Take care Naruto-kun and you better come out of this alive," before shunshining to in front of the genin.

"Alright maggots, I've already explained the rules & each team has a scroll. Get in front of your assigned gates in ten minutes," spoke Anko loudly, reverting to the bad ass kunoichi personality.

Naruto just stood there, too shocked to move.

'_And also, did she just call me 'Naruto-kun'?'_.

" Hey dobe, what are you spacing off about? Don't tell me you're having second thoughts about this exam," said Sasuke while smirking.

"Shut up teme!" growled Naruto with an irritated expression on his face.

"N-Naruto-kun…"

Naruto turned around to see a blushing Hinata.

"Huh? Hinata, what are you doing here?."

Seeing she was red he asked, "Are you okay? Your face is all red, you don't have a fever do you? Here let me check," uttered Naruto as he put the back of his hand on her forehead.

'_Arrgh, how can that idiot be so dense?'_ thought Sakura with an exasperated sigh.

'_What a loser!'_thought Sasuke while shaking his head.

Hinata blushed furiously upon the contact and invented a new shade of red as she started to sway.

'_No! I cannot faint, I have to do this for Naruto-__kun'_thought Hinata.

"Na-Naruto-kun, here ...th-this is f-for y-your ch-cheek," she murmured, blushing at the mention of Naruto's cheek before handing him her self made healing ointment.

"For me? Thanks Hinata!," exclaimed Naruto while applying the ointment on his cheek, healing the cut instantly due to Kyuubi's chakra.

"Wow! That's so cool! Did you made this Hinata?," the blonde asked as he had never seen a medicine like this before. He knew almost all of the healing ointments due to several trips to the hospitals, courtesy of the villagers of course.

" Um, y-yes," replied Hinata shyly.

" Man, you're amazing Hinata!," the whiskered blonde exclaimed with his trademark foxy grin. Seeing her cute blushing face, he couldn't help but comment though.

"You know Hinata, you actually look cute. You know...blushing and all," verbalized Naruto while laughing nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.

THUD!

"Oi! H-Hinata, are you alright? Oi! Wake up, the second exam is about to start!" articulated Naruto frantically, not knowing what was wrong with her.

'_Kami-sama, how can he be so dense? He was flirting with her without even realizing it. Sometimes, I really feel for Hinata'_, thought Sakura.

Kiba and Shino arrived to see Hinata lying on the floor, blushing up a storm even though she was unconscious. Her face twisted into a smile as if she had just experienced a mind numbing orgasm.

Kiba sighed, " Don't worry Naruto, we'll take over from here."

"Is she alright?" the blonde asked, worry etched on his face.

"Don't worry Uzumaki-san, she just fainted from excitement and anxiety," answered Shino in his monotone voice.

"Oh! Okay, well good luck to you guys!"

"Thanks, see you at the tower idiot," replied Kiba confidently with a smirk.

"You bet dog-breath!," replied Naruto making Kiba growl at the nickname. Sakura giggled lightly to herself whereas Sasuke had a smirk on his face.

"Okay dobe, let's go," uttered the Uchiha while walking towards their assigned gate.

"Alright maggots, time to go wild. At the count of three, the gates will be opened. Oh, and one last advice before you go. Don't Die!," said Anko while putting on the most badass look she could muster.

One common thought running through all the genin except Gaara, _' She's scary!'_. (Yeah, even Neji even though he's a stuck up Hyuuga).

"Alright, get ready. ONE…..TWO…," shouted Anko, pausing dramatically as the genin waited with bated breath.

"Meh, get outta here," spoke Anko with a bored expression on her face, doing the 'shoo' motion with her hands.

All the genin sweatdropped, already past the gate as they dashed into the dense foliage.

**Team 7**

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura blurred through the gate, opting to go through the trees due to possibility of traps on the ground. After sometime, a Kusa nin(You know he's Orochimaru, so no point in creating suspense. I'm gonna use 'Orochimaru' after this instead of 'Kusa nin') started following them after easily dispatching his supposed teammates.

'_Soon Sasuke-kun, I will obtain your sharingan,'_thought Orochimaru while grinning like a maniac.

After three hours of travelling, Sasuke saw a clearing ahead with his Sharingan.

"Stop!" he ordered with a serious expression.

"What's the matter. Is someone ahead of us Sasuke-kun?" asked Sakura with some worry and anxiety visible on her face.

"There's a clearing ahead of us. We've been travelling for three hours now, we should take a break," he suggested with a sigh.

"Who told you were the fucking leader Sasuke-teme?" growled Naruto with a scowl on his face.

"Shut up Naruto-baka! He's right," Sakura interrupted sternly while Sasuke smirked victoriously.

Naruto however gritted his teeth in anger,_' If it wasn't for my mask, I would've slapped this pink haired bitch. One day Sasuke, I will show you what I'm truly capable of. Just you wait!'_

"Alright, lets go," the Uchiha uttered smugly while Sakura followed him.

SWOOSH!

As soon as Sasuke & Sakura landed in the clearing, a huge gust of wind approached them at high speeds.

Sasuke's eyes went wide when he saw chakra in the wind with his **Sharingan**(Copy Wheel Eye).

"SAKURA, NARUTO DUCK!," shouted Sasuke while himself ducking in the process. Sakura barely dodged the powerful current while Naruto couldn't dodge due him being in midair when he was just about to land.

'_Oh Shit!',_ thought Naruto before he was swept away by the strong tide of wind, blown away from the clearing.

The blonde skidded across the ground, far from the clearing before coming to a halt.

'_That was a Jounin level wind jutsu with a high amount of chakra in it which no genin should possess except me. The one who attacked us is clearly a jounin level or above. I have to warn Sasuke and Sakura before they get themselves killed,'_thought Naruto with a grim expression on his face.

Just as he was about to head back to the clearing, a huge snake attacked him. He jumped high in air just in time to dodge the snake as it had lunged forward, intending to eat him.

'_Phew, that was close. If it weren't for my keen senses due to Kyuubi, I probably would've been eaten. Clearly this snake is a summon and if my hunch is correct, it's sent by the one who attacked us. Meaning he's after Sasuke as he's the one having Sharingan, the last Uchiha while Sakura doesn't have anything special. He wants to keep me busy for sometime. I better hurry, don't have any time to play'_, the blonde pondered, landing on a branch in crouched position as he stared at the large reptile with narrowed eyes.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**(Shadow Clone Technique)," he mumbled, creating ten shadow clones.

"Alright guys, I know you're gonna hate me for this but you have to be eaten by that snake," said Naruto making the clones erupt in an outrage.

"WHAT? Are you crazy, there's NO way I'm going in that shithole!" yelled a shadow clone while pointing his index finger at the snake.

"Yeah! If you wanna do it that badly why don't you go in there?" asked another shadow clone in curiosity.

At this, Naruto's eyebrows twitched as he took a deep breath, "I'm the real one. So there's no point in me getting killed if I can use you. NOW GET HELL OUTTA HERE YOU LAZY BASTARDS OR NO RAMEN FOR YOU!"

All the shadow clones paled at this as they jumped towards the snake without any second thoughts.

"YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THIS!" yelled a clone in midair. As soon as they landed in front of the snake, it immediately leaped forward, eating all of them in a swipe.

Naruto grinned as he went through three hand seals before exclaiming, "**Kage Bunshin Bakuha no Jutsu**(Shadow Clone Explosion Technique)."

Immediately, the snake's stomach began to glow red, increasing in size until...

BHSHOOM!

It exploded in a huge blast, its body fluids spraying all around the area.

"Ugh, I really pity my clones," muttered Naruto, disgusted by the scene in front of him.

"I should get going," he spoke to himself before leaping in the direction of clearing where his team was.

**Sasuke and Sakura-After Naruto Was Blown Away**

Sasuke and Sakura had some bruises but nothing life threatening.

The Uchiha stood up, brushing the dust of him as he looked around for the attacker.

"Hello Sasuke-kun," greeted Orochimaru, suddenly landing in front of the duo.

Sasuke and Sakura's eyes widened upon seeing the same Kusa nin from before.

"You are that Kusa nin who returned the kunai to the proctor," the pink haired genin pointed out in realization.

"Why yes little girl and I know you guys have the heavens scroll in your possession," said Orochimaru.

"How did you-," the Uchiha trailed at the end in surprise.

"So, you genin want the earth's scroll huh?," asked the snake sanin with a smirk, showing them the earth scroll before gulping it down his throat.

Sakura almost threw up at seeing the sick display.

"If you want it, you'll have to fight me Sasuke-kun," the sanin hissed while grinning, leaking large amounts of chakra.

Sasuke and Sakura were immediately brought down to their knees, not being able to withstand the pressure as they panted due to the strain.

'_This guy is way above genin level. We can't defeat him. We'll have to get outta here!'_ thought the Uchiha in alarm.

Orochimaru lowered his killing intent, wanting to fight the Uchiha. Both the team seven's members were now breathing hard due to much needed oxygen as they struggled to calm themselves down.

"Sa-Sakura, w-when I say, we will retreat," spoke Sasuke shakily with Sakura agreeing with him seeing that they could not handle this Kusa genin.

"Come on Sasuke-kun, don't tell me the last Uchiha is just a lowly genin," mocked Orochimaru, trying to rile up the last Uchiha.

"Sakura, now!" yelled Sasuke as the duo started to run in the opposite direction as fast as they could.

"So, you're weaker than Itachi after all, ne Sasuke-kun?"

Upon hearing this Sasuke stopped dead in his tracks.

'_Well that worked'_, thought the sanin in amusement.

"What did you say?" growled Sasuke with barely contained rage in his voice.

"You are weaker than Itachi, Sasuke-kun. At your age, he was in Anbu while you still are a lowly genin. You have two tomoes in your sharingan while Itachi's Sharingan had fully matured by now. You are nothing compared to Itachi Sasuke-kun. You'll never be able to beat him and avenge your family. Even Naruto-kun is stronger than you."

This made the Uchiha see red as he clenched his fists, gritting his teeth while glaring at the sanin with his eyes blazing with Sharingan.

."..! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!," shouted a raging Sasuke as he dashed towards Orochimaru, eyes ablaze with his clan's doujutsu, hate clearly evident in his eyes at the mention of Itachi and Naruto being stronger than him.

"Sasuke-kun, NO!," shouted Sakura, her plea falling on deaf ears.

Upon reaching him, Sasuke went through a flurry of punches and kicks, going all out.

"Frontal attacks like these won't work Sasuke-kun," spoke a smirking Orochimaru, fluently dodging Sasuke's every single strike like a snake.

Sasuke went for a right uppercut when Orochimaru flipped backwards, landing gracefully before dashing forward again. He aimed a blurred kick at Sasuke's midsection who dodged it barely before jumped backwards using chakra beneath his feet.

"If it wasn't for your Sharingan, you would have the air knocked out of you Sasuke-kun," the sanin mocked with a cold chuckle making Sasuke growl, frustrated that he was not able to land even a single blow on him.

"Let's move this up a notch shall we?" uttered the snake sanin, the smirk ever present on his face.

Sasuke's eyes widened when Orochimaru disappeared from his view.

WHAM!

He felt an immense pain at his rib-section, currently flying back at high speeds before crashing into the bark of a tree getting the wind knocked out of him- courtesy of the Kusa nin appearing out of nowhere to deliver a powerful kick to his ribs.

Sasuke spat some blood from his mouth, trying to stand as his legs wobbled a bit.

'_What was that? I didn't see him move even with my sharingan and his kick felt stronger than even Kakashi sensei's'_, thought Sasuke in surprise.

"Hm, you are a disappointment Sasuke-kun. Do you really think you can kill Itachi at this level? It wouldn't even take him five seconds to beat you like this," the sanin again mocked with a neutral expression on his face.

"Are you alright Sasuke-kun?," asked a worried Sakura. She turned her head to glare at Orochimaru for hurting her crush like that.

"You want something little girl?" asked Orochimaru in amusement, never leaving his eyes off Sasuke.

"How dare you hurt Sasuke-kun like that you bastard!" yelled an angry Sakura.

She dashed towards Orochimaru with a kunai in her hands, intending on killing him. She tried to slash him on the chest when Orochimaru easily dodged her sloppy attack, delivered a crushing blow to her stomach.

"Agh!" Sakura was sent flying backwards as she skidded on the ground to a halt, blood dripping down her chin.

"You are a pathetic excuse for a kunoichi you lowly genin. Your attacks are academy level at best."

"**Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu!**(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Jutsu)," yelled Sasuke after going through a couple of hand signs, sending a huge fireball towards Orochimaru.

It hit him dead on resulting in the area getting covered with fire where Orochimaru was previously standing.

Sasuke smirked while panting as he had spent a lot of chakra on that last attack.

_'That'll teach him to mess with an Uchiha'_, he thought smugly, a confident expression on his face.

After the smoke cleared, Orochimaru stood there with three degree burns while the skin on his face was currently torn off to reveal a pale skin, eyes yellow with slitted pupils. Sasuke's eyes widened as he saw his face,_'What is he?'_

"Nice try Sasuke-kun, but you'll have to do more than just basic jutsus," said a laughing Orochimaru before dissolving into mud.

'_What! A mud clone'_, thought Sasuke while frantically searching for the Kusa nin with his Sharingan.

"SASUKE-KUN! BEHIND YOU!," yelled an injured Sakura making his eyes widened upon hearing her.

"You shouldn't let your enemies get behind you Sasuke-kun," whispered Orochimaru in Sasuke's ear from behind.

The Uchiha quickly turned around to receive a bone shattering punch to his face as he was sent flying back. He flipped several times in midair due to force of the punch, rolling roughly on the ground before skidding to a halt. He could now feel several of his bones crack due to his roughly landing, coughing more blood along some teeth.

"SASUKE-KUN, ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" yelled a worried Sakura.

"DOES IT LOOK LIKE I'M ALRIGHT!" he shouted back in frustration, wiping the blood off his chin.

"Let me ask you, do you want power Sasuke-kun?" asked Orochimaru with a serious expression on his face now.

"Wh-What..," stuttered Sasuke, taken aback by what he was hearing.

"I can grant you power beyond imagination Sasuke-kun," the snake sanin continued.

"Wh-Who are you?," asked Sasuke, clearly terrified of this mysterious entity. Orochimaru peeled off the Kusa genin's skin to show his pale complexion face.

"My name is Orochimaru, of the legendary sanin," he answered, a grave expression on his face.

Sasuke and Sakura's eyes widened upon hearing this.

'_No doubt we were no match for him. He's a freaking Sanin!'_ thought Sasuke, having read about them in the Academy.

'_He must be the traitor the textbooks didn't mention about'_, thought Sakura in realization.

"Wh-What do you want with me?" the Uchiha asked shakily.

"You'll know in due time Sasuke-kun. For now, I'll leave you a parting gift," said Orochimaru with a smirk before his neck elongated to impossible lengths, giving Sasuke a hickey...err bit him on the side neck before retracting his head.

Sasuke screamed in pure agony, clutching his neck with his hand before falling on the ground unconscious. Three black tomoes forming a circle could be seen where Orochimaru bit Sasuke indicating a Heaven's Curse seal.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO SASUKE-KUN YOU FREAK?," shouted a horrified Sakura.

"Just a little gift. In time, he'll seek me for more power. Now, its time for you to die you annoying pest," spoke Orochimaru before dashing towards Sakura, intent on killing her making her eyes widen in fear.

Orochimaru was halfway through when a kunai attacked with a paper bomb landed just in front on him, though at a safe distance from Sakura.

'_A paper bomb!'_ thought Orochimaru...

BOOM!

...before shunshining backwards just in time to avoid the blast.

"Looks like I made it just in time," spoke Naruto, currently standing on tree branch above Sakura.

"Naruto! What took you so long?" yelled a relieved Sakura, happy to see the blond for the first time in her life.

"I had to take care of an annoying pest, courtesy of our friend Orochimaru here," the blonde uttered as he landed in front on Sakura, who was still lying on the ground due to being injured.

"Ah Naruto-kun, I was beginning to think you died out there. But I'm curious, how did you know I'm Orochimaru. I'm pretty sure the Academy doesn't tell about me except Jiraiya and Tsunade and you were not here when I told Sasuke-kun," asked Orochimaru, intrigued by the jinchuriki.

"Well your pale snake-like face is a dead giveaway...and jiji told me about you too," the whiskered blonde answered.

"Oh...and who is this jiji of yours?" asked Orochimaru in amusement.

"It doesn't concern you snake face. What did you do to Sasuke?," asked Naruto with narrowed eyes.

"He's just unconscious as he couldn't take me on. I'm hoping for a better challenge from you Naruto-kun," the sanin verbalized with a cold playful smirk.

'_I am no match for him. I have to stall him and hope the guards around here were alerted due to such high amount of chakra he used in that wind jutsu_,' thought Naruto with a grim expression on his face.

"What are you waiting for Naruto-kun? Don't tell me you're scared," mocked Orochimaru, amused by the jinchuriki's lack of answer.

'_Shadow Clones & Exploding Shadow Clones wouldn't work against a sanin. Guess I have to use that style although it's quite risky. But it can stall him for sometime due to the element of surprise,'_ thought Naruto, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead as he closed his eyes.

"Alright Naruto-kun, if you just want to stand there, then allow me to ki-," Orochimaru stopped when he saw red chakra start to leak out of Naruto, his hair becoming more spikier, his whiskers more defined now, eyes turning from cerulean blue to crimson red with black slits in the middle while his nails and canines became elongated, pointed at the edges. The ground he was standing on cracked under the pressure of demonic chakra, creating a small crater- greatly shocking the snake sanin.

'_How is this boy intentionally using the Kyuubi's chakra? It's not possible for any jinchuriki to control a bijuu's chakra at such a young age. This boy is supposed to be the dead last of his generation. How can he control the bloodlust that the Kyuubi is emitting right now? Still, he's no match for me, but the power he's radiating is at least mid-jounin level. It's a relief I created a sound and chakra barrier around this clearing or else everyone in the village would have sensed the foul chakra. I suspected the boy to use a bit of kyuubi's chakra, but not like this!'_ thought, Orochimaru clearly amazed by the jinchuriki.

'_This chakra, I've felt it before in the Wave country while we were on the bridge. It feels so dark & evil. How can Naruto have two types of chakra? Normal chakra is blue & barely visible, yet this chakra is red and clearly visible. Naruto, what are you hiding from us?'_ thought Sakura in wonder.

'_Alright, I cannot remain in this state for long. I have to stall him for as long as possible,'_ thought Naruto with gritted teeth.

"**Alright you bastard, you want a better challenge that's what you will get!**" exclaimed Naruto in a demonic tone, getting down on all fours with one tail of red chakra waving behind him.

He dashed towards Orochimaru at such speeds that even Rock Lee would have hard time following him with his weights off and third celestial gate open. To Sakura, he was a blur.

Orochimaru was surprised by his speed but quickly composed himself as he met the jinchuriki in a clash locking both of his hands with Naruto's, forming a crater beneath them due to the force of the impact.

'_For a boy, his strength is amazing, even for a jinchuriki,'_ thought Orochimaru, surprised at the blonde's strength. The sanin's eyes widened when he saw the red chakra tail coming towards him, he immediately ducked down, although barely- releasing the hands lock in the process. Naruto used his tail to support himself on the ground while he was in midair & went for a kick at Orochimaru's face. The sanin caught his leg and hurled him upwards.

Naruto regained his balance while in mid air and placed his foot on a tree's bark. Using it as a springboard, he launched himself at high speeds towards Orochimaru while forming a hand sign(Criss Cross).

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" exclaimed Naruto as ten shadow clones appeared, each having the same chakra cloak and heading onto a collision course with Orochimaru along with the original.

Orochimaru smirked as he just stood there.

"**Fuuton: Kuukiburasuto no Jutsu**(Wind Release: Air Blast Technique)," he muttered, firing a concentrated blast of wind natured chakra towards Naruto and his clones.

POOF!

"Nngh!"

All his clones were dispelled instantly while he was sent flying back.

WHAM!

The blonde slammed into a rock boulder, his eyes widening in pain.

'_He didn't even use any handseals for that jutsu! I have to resort to taijutsu, I'm no match for him in ninjutsu and I don't any genjutsu'_, thought Naruto while standing up shakily, the chakra cloak still covering him.

"I'm surprised you can stand after that blow Naruto-kun," spoke Orochimaru, deeply impressed by the boy's endurance.

Naruto said nothing as he dashed towards the snake sanin, again engaging him in a fierce taijutsu battle. They were a blur to Sakura as they they traded blows with each other, punch for punch, kick for kick, sending strong currents of winds throughout the clearing. Sakura was bracing herself from the violent winds, still lying on the ground.

'_I can't even see them. Was Naruto always this strong? Sasuke-kun is no match for him. Am I the weak link of our team'_, thought Sakura, now regretting every time she hit Naruto and thought of him as annoying on the line to save her or she would have died a while ago.

Naruto winced when he felt his muscles straining under the pressure of kyuubi's chakra.

'_I can't last for much longer now. It's now or never,'_ the blonde thought as he jumped back to create some distance between him and Orochimaru.

"Alright, here we go... **Demonic Fox Claw**," muttered Naruto to himself.

' _I've never heard of a style with that name_,' thought Orochimaru in curiosity.

Naruto opened his fists and crouched his fingers making claw-like hands because of his elongated nails. His one arm was in front of him while the other was behind him, pointing it upwards making an approximately thirty degree angle with the horizontal, his knees were slightly bent, demonic chakra(youki) concentrated on his nails which were now a denser red in color, thus settling into his taijutsu stance.

He then dashed towards Orochimaru on all fours and upon reaching, unleashed a flurry of claw strikes with a fox's agility.

'_What is he doing? He's only trying to slash me. His nails cannot do enough physical damage,'_ thought Orochimaru while dodging his strikes.

Meanwhile, Sakura had slipped into unconsciousness due to fatigue and her injuries.

When one of Naruto's nails slightly slashed one of Orochimaru's hands, Naruto smirked and flipped backwards.

"What's so funny brat?" asked the sanin with a raised eyebrow, getting annoyed with the jinchuriki.

"Let me tell you the essence of my taijutsu style...you would be dying anyway. This style is only useful if someone has demonic chakra. A bijuu's chakra is poisonous to human body but has less effect on a jinchuriki himself as they get adapted to it. I concentrate my youki at my hands and if my nails cuts someone even the slightest bit, then the demonic chakra enters the system of the victim. Meaning when my claw slashed your skin, the youki entered your system and is currently working like a poison. This is just like the gentle fist, meaning even the slightest contact is deadly. However, I only need one successful strike unlike the gentle fist in which chakra points are closed one by one, thus my style is more deadly without the need of accuracy and precision. Hence the name Demonic Fox Claw," explained Naruto with a proud and a confident smirk on his face.

Orochimaru was shocked to the core by the deadliness of this taijutsu & only had one thought running through his mind:

'_This boy is a genius!'_

'_One thing which I didn't tell him is thatstyle requires large amount of kyuubi's chakra & hence every time I use it, it puts huge strain on my muscles and my life span is shortened considerably. It's use is very limited,'_ thought Naruto with a sigh.

Orochimaru however could feel the poisonous chakra acting and disrupting his normal body functioning and chakra coils.

"Well Naruto-kun, your taijutsu may be invincible but not against me," said Orochimaru while smirking.

"What?"

His question was answered when Orochimaru's upper body started to become like a balloon and his mouth opened to an impossible size from which another Orochimaru extruded, dripping with saliva.

Naruto's jaw dropped to the ground in shock.

'_This guy is a freak!'_ he thought in horror. Suddenly the blonde started to feel immense pain as he was on his knees, coughing more blood while red chakra began to recede back into his body.

'_Damn! Several of my muscles have been torn. I can't even stand properly!'_ he mused to himself, the bijuu's red chakra now completely dissipated.

"Guess your body couldn't handle anymore of the kyuubi's chakra Naruto-kun," Orochimaru verbalized with an amused smirk.

"H-How c-can you still be st-standing?" asked Naruto who was currently writhing in pain.

"I can regenerate my whole body if it gets damaged...still, it does take a lot of chakra. Why do you think I've been doing human experiments all these years?" he asked in a proud tone.

"Y-Your Sick," spat Naruto, his one eye closed as he gritted his teeth in pain.

Orochimaru walked towards Naruto before picking the blonde by his throat.

"Well, you clearly gave a better fight, a much better fight Naruto-kun. It's time to end this though," the sanin declared with a grim expression on his face, lifting Naruto's orange jumpsuit to reveal jinchuriki's stomach with a spiral like seal.

"O-Oi, please don't rape me!" said a horrified Naruto as chibi Naruto ran in his mindscape while screaming-"HE'S GONNA TAKE OUR VIRGINITY, RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!."

Orochimaru sweatdropped while his eyebrows twitched, " I'm not raping you brat. What do you think I am- a gay?," said an annoyed Orochimaru.

Naruto tilted his head to the side in genuine confusion," Um...yeah."

"Argh, that's it brat! I will seal the Kyuubi's chakra so you can't use that taijutsu of yours since it depends so much on your youki!" exclaimed Orochimaru while his right hand's fingertips started to glow with blue chakra, each having a different kanji whereas Naruto's eyes widened in fear.

"It's over gaki," stated Orochimaru, thrusting his hand towards Naruto's stomach.

"**Gogyo Fu**-," just as his hand was about to connect to Naruto's stomach, it was grabbed by a larger hand.

Orochimaru looked up for his eyes to widen in mind boggling shock.

Standing at the side, holding his hand was a large man, wearing a black cloak with red clouds on it. His complexion was pale blue, pointed teeth and gills-like features on his cheeks. On his forehead was a Kirigakure's protector with a slash in the middle, marking him as a missing nin. A large sword was bandaged in white wrappings on his back.

"Kisame?" asked Orochimaru, not believing his eyes.

"Orochimaru, long time no see!" exclaimed a grinning Kisame Houshigaki, one of the strongest members of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist.

**Soooo, do you like it? I'm sure you guys have LOTs of questions, but I say that please wait as EVERYTHING will be explained in the upcoming chapters and I'm sure that you'll like the next coming chapters. Sorry for leaving you at a cliffhanger though. :D**

**Oh, and how was the humor(if there was any) & the fights? Seriously, please tell me 'bout it, so I can improve my writing skills. For now, the Harem is a secret, but you'll get to know it as the story progressess.**

**See you guys later! XD**

**N6023**


	2. Awaken: Transmigeration Eye!

**Hey guys! Well first thing i wanna say is thanks for all the reviews, it means a lot to me! But one thing I'm really excited about is that the first chapter had 1,254 visitors & 65 favourites! So, I was just wondering if there were 65 favourites, how come the reviews were almost half of it. It would have been better if the reviews were a bit closer to number of favourites. But oh well, atleast people liked my fic. So here's the second chapter.**

**Chapter-2: The Legendary Rinnegan Awakens**

"Orochimaru, long time no see," said Kisame having a maniacal grin on his face.

"Kisame? What the hell are you doing here?" asked a shell shocked Orochimaru.

"I'm hurt Orochimaru. Aren't you happy to see me?" mocked Kisame.

Orochimaru growled before dissolving into mud dropping Naruto onto the ground and reforming a distance away.

"Ah! Damn snake, my hands are all muddy now," said Kisame waving his hand.

Naruto sweatdropped while thinking,_'Great! Another nutcase'_.

"Um, who are you?" asked Naruto while trying to stand dismissing him as a possible enemy as he saved him one way or the other.

"Stay down if you want to live brat!," said Kisame while standing in front of Naruto facing Orochimaru with a serious aura surrounding him.

'_How can Akatsuki be here. My spies informed me that they won't take any move for some years. And if Kisame is here, then he must be-'_

"It's been a while, Orochimaru," Orochimaru's thoughts were interrupted when he heard an all too familiar voice behing him sending chills down his spine.

He whipped his head to come face to face with a man around his height in his early twenties, wearing same black cloak with red clouds as Kisame, his face like an elder version of Sasuke, black onyx eyes & hair, an emotionless face and a leaf protector with a slash on the middle on his forehead indicating he too was a missing nin.

"I-Itachi?" said a shocked Orochimaru.

"Kisame, would you mind keeping Orochimaru busy for some time," said Itachi in his cold emotionless tone.

Upon hearing him, Kisame's grin widened.

"Sure! I've been itching to fight anyway," said Kisame while unwrapping the white bandages showing a large sword with metallic spikes in his hands.

"I'm sure you haven't forgotten about **Samehada**(Shark Skin). It's been hungry for some delicious chakra for sometime now," said Kisame whie walking towards Orochimaru leisurely.

Itachi shunshined to where a shocked Naruto was.

"Y-You're Itachi, Uchiha Itachi? The one who slaughtered his entire clan in one night and Sasuke's brother," asked a scared Naruto knowing that he was no match for the Uchiha prodigy. Itachi just stared impassively at Naruto.

'_Damn! I've got to get out of here. I've already done what I came here for. I can take on Kisame using_**_Kusanagi_**_(Grass Cutter), but Itachi is out of the question'_, thought Orochimaru before dissolving into a large tree's trunk behing him.

"Where the hell do you think you're going you snake bastard," yelled KIsame dashing towards the tree where Orochimaru dissolved.

"Leave him Kisame. He's a master of Camouflage Jutsu, there's no point in chasing him. He's already gone past the barrier. Besides we came here for Naruto-kun," said Itachi.

"Fine! But next time I see that snake, I'm gonna shove Samehada up his ass," growled Kisame.

"W-What do you w-want with me," asked Naruto fearing for his life.

Itachi closed his eyes to reveal a fully evolved Sharingan, three tomoes in each eyes which turned into a black shuriken.

'_There's a fourth stage to Sharingan!'_ thought a gaping Naruto.

"This is **Mangekyou Sharingan**(Kaleidoscope Copy Wheel Eye) Naruto-kun," said Itachi as if reading his thoughts.

"A-Are you h-here to kill me," said Naruto who was scared shitless now and in pain due to his muscles being teared.

"I'm sorry for what I'm about to do Naruto-kun, but this is the only way," said Itachi, regret visible in his eyes as he stared into Naruto's eyes.

"**Tsukiyomi**(Goddess of the Moon)," Naruto's eyes widened as the world around him faded.

**World of Tsukiyomi**

He noticed that he was tied to a cross-like post, sky blood red with a moon. In front of him stood Itachi with a wakizashi.

"This is the world of Tsukiyomi where I control everything. For the next seventy two hours I will kill the people you care most about in front of you repeatedly until you awaken **it**," said Itachi.

"Awaken what?" said a confused Naruto.

Itachi said nothing as Hiruzen Sarutobi appeared in front of Naruto.

"Jiji? What are you doing here? Get out of here!," yelled Naruto.

"I've always thought of you as my grandson Naruto-kun," said the aged Hokage with serene smile on his face. Itachi starting moving towards the Sandaime Hokage.

"I know, but we don't have time for this. Itachi is right behind you!," yelled Naruto getting restless by the second as Itachi approached the Hokage.

When Itachi reached him, he lifted the wakizashi.

"NO! JIJI, BEHIND YOU! ITACHI, I SWEAR IF YOU EVEN TOU-," Naruto was cut off as blood splattered all over his face, the beheaded hokage's head falling at Itachi's feet in a pool of blood.

Tears started pouring out of Naruto's eyes as his mind went into overdrive.

"Y-You k-killed him. Y-You killed my jiji. I-I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU BASTARD," Naruto, tears freely leaking out of his eyes as he violently thrashed against the invisible bindings trying to break free.

Then suddenly Ayame and Teuchi appeared in front of Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, I've always considered you my otouto," said Ayame with a sweet smile on her face.

"Hey kid, Ramen's on the house today," said Teuchi offering him a bowl of Ramen.

"OH NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NOT YOU TOO AYAME-NEE-CHAN, OJI-SAN. PLEASE KAMI NO!," shouted Naruto desperately trying to break free.

Naruto tried to close his eyes but found that he couldn't. Once again, he was forced to watch as Teuchi and Ayami were beheaded in front of Naruto, blood again splattered all over Naruto and Itachi, the ramen mixing with the pool of blood.

"NOOOO! PLEASE, STOP IT! I BEG YOU! IF YOU WANT TO KILL ME, JUST GET IT OVER WITH," cried Naruto in desperation, tears rolling down his blood laced face, not being able to bear to see his loved one die.

'_I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but I have to do this. Kushina-sensie, I will not fail your son unlike Hatake'_, thought Itachi.

Itachi winced as he saw the murderous glare Naruto was giving him. His eyes full of hatred & disgust.

'_I hope he doesnot walk the same path which my idiot of a brother took'_, thought Itachi apparently disappointed in his brother for he was walking the same path all the Uchihas in the past took. Superiority practically was Sasuke's middle name.

Well, back to Itachi's torture session.

Naruto's eyes widened when a person appeared he really didn't want to be killed.

"N-Naruto-kun, I l-love y-you," said a sweetly smiling Hinata with a cute blush on her face.

Naruto was shocked upon hearing the confession. He was not surprised by the confession itself, but rather how Itachi knew she loved him.

"H-How d-did you k-know?" asked Naruto staring at Itachi's, his eyes red and cheeks stained due to a mixture of blood & tears.

"I did not know Naruto-kun. Tsukiyomi automatically reads the mind of the victim, finding the ones he cares most about or loves deeply," said Itachi glancing at Hinata while saying the last part.

Yes, Naruto knew Hinata loved him & loved her very much even though he acted like a dense idiot. It was just a part of his mask to act like a moron, being oblivious to Hinata's feelings. Due to his heightened senses, he could easily feel the presence of Hinata every time she followed him.

What Hinata didn't know was that sometimes Naruto followed her too, curious to know about his stalker, what she liked, what she disliked, her hobbies etc and over time fell in love with her. He loved her smile, her kindness, her scent, her lavender eyes, her blue hair, everything about her. She was the purest soul he knew.

And now to watch her get killed in front of him, he could not even bear to think about it.

"D-Damn it! I'm s-sorry Hinata-chan," said Naruto while fresh tears leaked from his eyes.

"I c-couldn't protect my precious ones. What good of a hokage would I become?" said Naruto in a heartbroken tone, like his world was shattered in front of him.

"It's over for her Naruto-kun," said Itachi as his sword pierced throught Hinata's heart instantly killing her. Blood oozed out of Hinata's mouth, light leaving her eyes as her body dropped in a pool of blood & laid there motionless.

Naruto's face went blank as his mind still couldn't believe that his Hinata-chan was now dead. A few moments later seemingly neverending tears started falling from his face.

'_Hinata-chan…is…dead'_, thought Naruto over and over again.

A few moments later, pure white chakra started leaking out of Naruto's body forming a chakra cloak around him.

Itachi smirked at seeing the white chakra.

'_Great! It worked. He's awakening it. Our plan-'_, his thoughts were interrupted by an ear deafening scream.

"AAAAAAAAAARGHHHH, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME YOU BASTARD. MY EYES, HEAD, …. MY WHOLE BODY HURTS!," screamed Naruto who was violently thrashing around the invisible posts he was tied to.

'_I'd better end Tsukiyomi now. I have to preserve as much chakra as I can for we need to come back here in a few minutes'_, thought Itachi before ending the genjutsu.

**Outside-The Clearing**

Kisame had no idea what was going on. One second, Itachi & the blond brat were standing and the next, white chakra was leaking out of the brat's body while he was screaming in pain. Tsukiyomi is not supposed to do that, is it?

"Itachi! What the hell is going on? And what is that white chakra? I thought the chakra is supposed to red or blue in colour. Wasn't he supposed to awaken the **Rinnegan**(Ocular Eye)?" asked Kisame.

"Calm down Kisame. It's part of the process. Remember that Rinnegan is a very powerful doujutsu, even powerful than Sharingan & Byakugan, so the process of awakening it is very painful," said Itachi while he winced when the screams of Naruto got even louder.

'_It's a good thing that I covered this area in a high level genjutsu and a double layer soundproof barrier. No one should be able to interrupt us for a while'_, thought Itachi.

In case of Naruto, he had never felt so much pain in his life. Every inch of his body was hurting, he felt like his head & mainly his eyes were put on fire. He could feel large amount of chakra flowing through his coils, straining them, increasing their size, his muscles being torn apart and new ones being formed.

Itachi & Kisame were awed by the display of power by Naruto, although he was doing it unintentionally. His white chakra completely surrounding his body, a small crater had formed on the ground just by the force of chakra, releasing powerful gusts of winds, dust particles, pebbles and large chunks of Earth were rotating around Naruto in midair.

Some trees were uprooted by the force of wind. Sasuke & Sakura who were unconscious skidded back several metres. Itachi & Kisame had to apply chakra to their feet to keep themselves still. Their eyes were closed and arms in front of their faces to brace themselves properly.

"DAMN! THIS GAKI HAS ONE HELL OF A CHAKRA. HOW MUCH LONGER ITACHI," yelled Kisame.

"JUST A BIT LONGER, KISAME," Itachi shouted back.

Kisame's eyes widened upon hearing Itachi.

_'Did Itachi just shout! Naw, I must be hallucinating because of the chakra'_. thought Kisame.

"HEY ITACHI, DID YOU JUST SHOUT! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" yelled Kisame.

Itachi's eyebrows twitched at hearing him.

"Shutup Kisame," said an annoyed Itachi.

"WHAT? I CAN'T HEAR YOU," shouted KIsame not being able to hear due to ear deafening screams Naruto was making.

A vein popped on Itachi's forehead.

"I SAID SHUT THE HELL UP KISAME!," shouted Itachi.

"WHOA! YOU SHOUTED AGAIN AND CURSED TOO. ITACHI, I THINK THE LAST TSUKIYOMI MESSED UP YOUR HEAD," Kisame shouted back.

By now Itachi was fuming and his face was so red, that you could think he was blushing like Hinata.

**Author's notes**

What if Itachi & Kisame acted like Hinata & Naruto?

"K-Kisame-k-kun, I l-love y-you," said Hinata'ish Itachi.

"I love you too Itachi-chan dattebayo," said a grinning Naruto'ish Kisame in an orange jumpsuit. (Imagine Kisame in that retarded jumpsuit, it's HILARIOUS!)

**Author's notes-End**

Kisame immediately stopped his ranting when he saw the shuriken blades of Mangekyou Sharingan spinning wildly as Itachi glared at him.

Itachi & Kisame were suddenly blown away when a huge tide of chakra swept through the area, both crashing into the trees and suddenly the anguish screams of Naruto stopped.

"What the hell was that?" Kisame asked as he got up to see Itachi staring at something wide eyed with his Sharingan.

He turned to see nothing but smoke and dust arising from where the brat was standing.

"Oi Itachi, what's the matter? Did he died or something," said Kisame as he picked up his sword.

Itachi only stayed silent while he was in trance like state.

...

...

...

...

"OI! SAY SOMETHING DAMMIT!," shouted Kisame as a tic appeared on his forehead.

"H-His chakra is now white. But the scroll said it is only temporary, only when you're in the process of awakening the Rinnegan," said Itachi still in his trance like state, sharingan activated.

Kisame still couldn't see anything as the smoke was obscuring his vision.

"T-The white chakra was said to be possessed by **Rikudou Sennin**(Six Realms Sage), which means his chakra is of Light type," whispered Itachi not believing his eyes. For once, he couldn't believe what his sharingan was showing him.

"A-And his chakra coils, they are huge. His own reserves are mid-Kage level not counting Kyuubi," Itachi still whispering to himself.

"Oi, what are you blabbering about," said an annoyed Kisame.

There was a sudden gust of wind, not as violent as before, which came from the epicentre Naruto seemed to have created, also clearing the smoke in the process.

Itachi and Kisame's jaws dropped to the ground, their eyes almost bulging out of their sockets when they saw Naruto.

There standing in the middle was a 'man' with height about 5'4", not a shrimp. His jumpsuit was straining under the muscles which were a lot more noticeable now. His spiky blonde hair were glowing, if only a bit. They seemed to have grown a lot, pointing in every direction with bangs covering his eyes.

Itachi could have swore he saw a chibi Yondaime there. Anyone could mistake Naruto for Minato now, but his whisker marks were a dead giveaway as they were more defined adding to his ferocity.

'_Naruto's going to kill me for all the fangirls he's going to attract. Not that he will spare me now for what he endured in Tsukiyomi'_, thought Itachi.

Meanwhile, Kisame was having a hard time controlling the Samehada as it seemed to have taken a liking to Naruto's huge chakra reserves.

Naruto lifted his head to show his eyes for the first time after his seemingly super transformation. They were still a shade of blue(somewhat purple), one black ring surrounded a black dot-like pupil in the centre.

Naruto was surprised when instead of normal visibility, he could see chakra of almost everything. The trees, the ground and a double layered barrier? He could also see the genjutsu which surrounded the area. His eyesight was sharpened several times, he could even see chakra of small insects.

'_Whoa! What is this feeling. I feel much stronger now. I can feel my chakra has increased several times, it's like an endless valley of river. I just don't know how to describe it. And my muscles are like bushy brows. What happened to me?'_, thought Naruto while looking around.

But when he saw Itachi, the temperature of the area dropped several degrees. All he could see was red and feel an intense bloodlust for Itachi.

Seeing Naruto was directing huge amount of killing intent at him, Itachi immediately knew he had to do something and fast.

"I'M GOING TO RIP YOU TO SHREDS YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!," roared Naruto while he dashed towards Itachi or atleast tried to but immediately tripped on his feet & fell first into the ground.

"What the-," said a surprised Naruto.

'_Why can't I move properly!'_, thought a panicked Naruto.

"Kisame! You know what to do. I will capture him in a Tsukiyomi before he is used to his new body and you will keep giving me chakra from outside the Tsukiyomi. This time, it's going to drain a huge amounts of chakra. LET'S GO!," said Itachi before they both disappeared. To any normal eye, they just vanished from sight. But due to his doujutsu, Naruto could see them, although barely, coming towards him.

Kisame appeared behing Naruto, picked him and held him in a bear hug like grip from behind.

Itachi appeared in front of Naruto, staring him in the eyes.

"What are you-," Naruto was cutoff.

"**Tsukiyomi**"

'_Oh shit! Not again'_, thought a groaning Naruto as forest around him faded.

"Here you go Itachi," said Kisame keeping his right hand on Itachi's shoulder and started giving him his chakra while he held onto Naruto with one arm.

**World of Tsukiyomi**

Naruto again found himself tied to same posts with same red sky and same moon with Itachi standing in front of him.

"What do you want Itachi? Why am I here again?" spat Naruto.

Itachi sighed, "Alright Naruto-kun, from this point you WILL listen to me," said as he placed a silencing jutsu on Naruto.

"You've noticed the changes in your body, haven't you," asked Itachi.

Naruto went wide eyed after hearing him.

"You can shake your head Naruto-kun," said Itachi.

'_His eyes are just like pain. The only difference is that he has three rings & Naruto has one ring'_, thought Itachi while observing Naruto's Rinnegan.

Naruto nods.

"Now I want you to close your eyes, concentrate and tell me if you feel chakra in your eyes," said Itachi.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at Itachi.

"Please believe me Naruto-kun. If you don't believe me, then look at this scroll," said Itachi while showing him a scroll.

Naruto's eyes widened upon reading the scroll. It said-

_Dear Naruto-kun,_

_I know you are thinking Itachi killed us, but it was just a high level genjutsu-Tsukiyomi, an ability granted to the Uchihas when they acquire the Mangekyou Sharingan. It affects all your five senses, plus your perception of time. So, whoever was killed is alive and well._

_Now, as a gennin of Konohagakure No Sato, I order you to fully cooperate with Uchiha Itachi and his companion Hoshigaki Kisame. They will explain everything, it's for the best._

_Your jiji,_

_Hokage of Konohagakure No Sato_

Beneath was the official stamp of the Hokage. Tears of relief started flowing from Naruto's eyes.

'_Thank you Kami! Thank you Kami! Everyone's alive. Hinata-chan too!'_, thought Naruto happily like he was just offered Ramen on the house.

"Now, do what I told you Naruto-kun," said Itachi while putting back the scroll.

Naruto nodded as he closed his eyes and started concentrating.

"Do you feel any chakra?" asked Itachi.

Upon seeing Naruto nod, Itachi explained-" That's what it feels like when you have a doujutsu. Ninjas having Sharingan and Byakugan also feel chakra in their optical coils"

'_I have a doujutsu!'_, thought Naruto enthusiastically.

"You Naruto, have one of the strongest doujutsus ever seen- the Rinnegan which was said to be possessed by the Sage of the Six Paths. I presume you know about the creator of ninjutsu," said Itachi.

Naruto nodded.

'_Finally those secret hours of boring reading in the library is coming in handy'_, thought Naruto.

"Now your Rinnegan can be turned off like Sharingan & Byakugan. To deactivate it, close your eyes and try to remove chakra from your eyes. It's pretty easy, try it," said Itachi.

Naruto nodded and closed his eyes. After a few moments, he opened his eyes to show the same cerulean blue colour.

"Your doujutsu is far stronger than Sharingan or Byakugan. But that doesn't mean you are stronger. You are only mid-Chunin at best right now," said Itachi seriously.

Upon seeing Naruto nod, Itachi continued.

"Before I go any further, I want you to promise me that you would not show any hostility against me when I unbind you. Or else, you know what I can do to you in Tsukiyomi," said Itachi seriously while his Mangekyou Sharingan spun wildly to make his point clear.

Naruto gulped and nodded frantically.

'_Jeez! He's even scarier than that crazy proctor'_, thought Naruto.

Immediately the cross posts that were holding Naruto disappeared while Itachi undid the silencing jutsu.

Naruto fell on the ground, he tried to stand but found it difficult as he was not able to control his body movements properly. When he stood, his legs became wobbly and he fell/sat on a chair?

"Where did this chair come from?" asked Naruto aloud.

"In Tsukiyomi, I control everything including space & time. I can make anything happen here," said Itachi, amused by the blonde's perplexed expression.

"Cool! This jutsu is amazing. I wish I could do this technique," said Naruto giddily.

"Alright Naruto, do you have any questions before I continue because I don't want to be interrupted when I speak," said Itachi seriously.

"Right! I have many questions. Let's start- WHY THE HELL CAN'T I CONTROL MY BODY PROPERLY? WHY DID YOU TORTURE ME BY MAKING ME SEE MY PRECIOUS PEOPLE GETTING KILLED? WHO IS THAT SHARK FACE WITH YOU? WHY ARE YOU WEARING MATCHING COSTUMES? WHY DID OROCHIMARU ATTACKED SASUKE? WHY DID WE COME IN THIS 'TSUKIYOMI' AGAIN? WHY DID JIJI ORDERED YOU TO DO THIS? I THOUGHT YOU WERE A MISSING-NIN. AND IF YOU'RE STILL FOLLOWING THE HOKAGE'S ORDERS, THAT MEANS YOU'RE A GOOD GUY. AND IF YOU'RE A GOOD GUY, WHY DID YOU SLAUGHTER THE ENTIRE UCHIHA CLAN. AND IF YOU HAD TO KILL THEM, WHY DIDN'T YOU KILL SASUKE-TEME? SERIOUSLY, HE'S SUCH A PAIN IN THE ASS!," shouted Naruto before panting to catch his breath.

'_Did the Rinnegan expanded his vocal chords too?'_, thought Itachi with a raised eyebrow.

"Ahm, well, first I will answer those questions which are not linked to your doujutsu. Before I answer these questions, I want you to know that some of the answers are SS- class secrets instated by the Sandaime-sama. So you'll have to keep the answers to yourself only. Do you understand Naruto-kun?" asked Itachi.

Upon seeing Naruto nod, Itachi closed his eyes and continued.

"Many years ago, Konoha was formed by the Uchiha and Senju Clan. The leaders of the these two clans were Uchiha Madara & Senju Hashirama, both wanted to be the Hokage but ultimately, Senju Hashirama was chosen to become the Shodaime Hokage. Wanting to throw a coup, Madara tried to coax the Uchiha clan members into joining him. They however, strongly influenced by the Shodai's words, didn't join him. Fueled with anger and betrayal, the leader of the Uchiha clan left the village. After some years, he came back to destroy Konoha which lead to the duel between Hashirama and Madara. It is said that Madara died in that battle, but I have my suspicions. After that, the Nidaime was chosen as Senju Tobirama, brother of Senju Hashirama, then the Sandaime Hokage and then the Yondaime Hokage. But not a single Uchiha ever became the Hokage. This hurt the pride of Uchiha clan greatly & some years after the Kyuubi attack, they started planning a coup de'tat against the Sandaime Hokage. I became aware of their plans and found that the whole Uchiha clan was involved except some few people like Sasuke and my Mother, so I reported to the Hokage. I was given a S-ranked mission to annihilate the entire Uchiha clan, but inwardly I knew that I wouldn't be able to kill Sasuke and my mother. But before I could stab that bastard of my father he pulled my mom in front of him, it was too late for me to stop the attack and she was killed. She was an excellent shinobi & propably stronger than Fugaku but due to the situation she was caught off-guard or she could have easily stopped me. I put Sasuke in a comatose state for two weeks using Tsukiyomi and made him believe only power mattered to me. I intended for him to hate me and not follow the path what my arrogant ancestors took, but instead he became a power hungry Uchiha. Now I'm regretting my decision to let him live," explained Itachi with a sigh.

Naruto was shell shocked as he came to know the circumstances behind the Uchiha massacre.

"W-Well, that was really a huge sacrifice on your part for the village. You have my utmost respects. I'm sorry for calling you a murderer before," said Naruto in regret.

"No need to apologize Naruto-kun. It's nothing compared to what I did to you in Tsukiyomi before," said Itachi dismissing his apology.

"But who is your partner?" asked Naruto still sitting on the chair.

"He is Kisame Houshigaki, one of the members of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Don't worry, he's on my side. We both are a part of an organisation called Akatsuki. It's a group of very strong S-ranked missing nins which aims to collect all the nine bijuu in the world," said Itachi.

Naruto's eyes widened upon hearing him. "But we won't let them do anything to you. Kisame and I are assigned to capture you, so you're safe for now. We are acting as undercover agents for the Hokage and report to him about the Akatsuki's movements. The black cloak with red clouds signifies we are the members of Akatsuki. Akatsuki members always travel in pair, supporting each other's abilities and hence it's difficult to defeat them," said Itachi.

"But what does this organisation wants to do with all the tailed beasts?" asked Naruto.

"Even we don't know it's true motives, but whatever it is for, it sure is not good," said Itachi grimly.

"Okay, so far I understand but I still can't understand why did jiji ordered you to come here in the middle of chunin exams," asked a confused Naruto.

"Hokage-sama wanted you to awaken your bloodline limit as soon as possible because of the growing threat the Akatsuki poses and after seeing Orochimaru today, I believe it was the right decision. But still, he took a gamble as he was not sure if you would awaken it. You need to get strong as fast as possible Naruto-kun, for your no match for Orochimaru or the Akatsuki right now," said Itachi.

Naruto nodded with pure undeterred determination in his eyes.

"As for why Hokage-sama particularly sent me to awaken your bloodline, it's because to activate Rinnegan, one must see the people he cares the most about die. But Hokage-sama couldn't do that to you so he sent me to use Tsukiyomi on you, make you see your loved ones die and in the process activate Rinnegan. It was an ingenious idea if I must say so," said Itachi.

"Wow, jiji's really smart, ain't he," said an impressed Naruto while Itachi nodded.

"Now comes the important part. After seeing Orochimaru attack your squad, I'm suspecting he is planning something big, so you're gonna need everything to tackle whatever there is for you in the future. Hokage-sama also ordered me to train you Naruto, right now," said Itachi while Naruto's eyes widened.

"But, I don't have time to train, chunin exams are going on remember," said a confused Naruto while Itachi smirked at his perplexed face.

"You forgot, that three days in Tsukiyomi is only one second on the outside," said an amused Itachi.

Naruto's jaw dropped to the ground, if this is true then he could get three days worth of training in only one second. The applications of this jutsu are limitless!

"But this jutsu uses a lot of chakra and I can only do it twice a day, meaning six days in the Tsukiyomi. But, my partner Kisame is constantly giving me his chakra meaning the time we can spend training in here will be increased and believe me when I say he has huge chakra reserves. He's called a bijuu without a tail," said Itachi while enjoying the look of Naruto's gaping expression.

"H-How much time?" asked Naruto in barely contained excitement.

"Kisame can use about ten times chakra as me and can still take on a jounin. Therefore we can spend sixty days in Tsukiyomi, meaning two months," said a smirking Itachi.

Now Naruto had trouble picking his jaw from the ground.

"A-Amazing. This means that on the outside only twenty seconds would have passed," said Naruto in awe.

"You're right. But remember, in Tsukiyomi you can only train in ninjutsu and genjutsu. It's because you can only train your mind here while your body is only standing in the real world, so physical training would be useless. But you can practise some taijutsu styles to memorize them," explained Itachi.

"But what use a taijutsu style is if I don't have the required strength, agility, precision & speed for it. Even if I master all the katas of the taijutsu, it still wouldn't as effective as it should be," said a confused Naruto while Itachi nodded.

"That's where I answer the question why you are not able to properly control your body. You see Naruto-kun, when you awakened the Rinnegan, your genes and body structure changed drastically. It's like you have a completely new body now. All your old muscles & tendons were destroyed in place of new ones. That's why you felt so much pain coursing through your body before. These new changes result in drastically increased speed, strength, reflexes, agility, flexibility, almost anything you can relate to taijutsu. But your mind is not used to this upgraded body of yours. You have to train your mind so it can be in synchronisation with your body. Tsukiyomi is a perfect place for your training now. Your body now, is ready for almost all the mid-level taijutsu styles that the shinobi world can throw. Though I prefer you only learn one and completely master it," explained Itachi.

"So you're saying that I'm a two years toddler now who can't even control his body properly," muttered an annoyed Naruto but Itachi clearly heard him.

"Don't be so down Naruto. It may seem frustrating but you'll see how big of a physical upgrade you got. Your body is now that of a rookie jounin. It takes years of hard work for a chunin to get this level of fitness which you only got in a matter of minutes," said Itachi.

"But isn't it unfair for other shinobi who train so hard everyday of their life. Before a couple of minutes, I was one of them, a genin with no talent at all and then suddenly this. Although bloodlines are cool and all, but I never really liked them. It seems to give unfair advantages to bloodline users. For instance, your Sharingan, you guys just copy jutsus and predict our movements before we even know what our move will be. It takes sweat and blood to learn those techniques, to hone our reflexes and skills but the Uchihas just copy them in a couple of minutes!," said an angry Naruto making the Uchiha in front of him sigh.

"You should know Naruto, a bloodline limit doesnot make a shinobi invincible. Even though the Sharingan can copy a jutsu, it does not master it for which you have to do your own hardwork. For example, let's take a simple Fireball jutsu, if you copy it with your Sharingan, it only shows the required handseals and the amount of chakra to be applied. So when we do it after the copying it, we do the weakest form of the respective jutsu. To improve it we have to do our own training so that we can burn as much oxygen as we can using our fire natured chakra without using excess amount of chakra than required. If we clash the weaker form of jutsu with an experienced fire element user, his fireball would be much bigger and would be very high in heat intensity as compared to that of a freshly copied jutsu," explained Itachi.

"But during our first C-rank mission, Kakashi sensie fought a Kiri missing-nin, Momochi Zabuza. During the fight, he copied his Water Dragon Jutsu and when they both fired the dragons at each other, they just cancelled each other. Then how can a freshly copied jutsu be as strong as compared to Zabuza's jutsu, as he was proficient in water element," asked Naruto while Itachi smirked after listening to his question.

"That was not the first time he did that jutsu Naruto-kun. In fact, I have seen him use that jutsu many times when he was in Anbu. He was only bluffing so that the enemy may think that his Sharingan can perfect any jutsu that he throws at him. Didn't you ever think that Kakashi No Sharingan, the man who has copied over a thousand jutsus, wouldn't have copied a jutsu as common as Water Dragon Jutsu before. Deception is an important part of being a ninja Naruto-kun. Every bloodline has it's strengths & weakness. In Sharingan, even though you can see fast movements which are barely visible to naked eye, but if that Uchiha is not fast enough, what use it is of then. Also, take **Byakugan**(White Eye) for example, even though it can see chakra points and 3590 of vision, you can increase your chakra so much that the immense amount of light forces the Byakugan user to either deactivate or stun him temporarily, and believe me as I have already done that. Also, a long range fighter can defeat a Hyuuga as they only rely on gentle fist and closing the chakra points of their opponents," said Itachi. Upon seeing Naruto silent, he continued;

"The world of shinobi is not fair, life is not fair. You should know it best. You were always scorned, hated, glared, ignored and beaten upon for something you had no control over. Grow up Naruto-kun, Akatsuki members would always attack you in pair. It will probably be one on two battle, they wouldn't give a damn shit about the fight being unfair, they will do whatever it takes to capture you. In missions, if you're surrounded by enemies, you can't complain of it being unfair. You can't just whine about something you can do nothing about, instead you have to get over it. The three legendary sanin: Jiraiya, Tsunade & Orochimaru, none of them had any bloodlines, but they defeated many formidable bloodline users in the Third Great Shinobi War and are now S-ranked ninjas. It takes guts, determination and the will to never give up to become the best. Tell me Naruto-kun, do you have what it takes to become the strongest shinobi I know you can be, can you continue to bear the burden of being the jinchuriki of Kyuubi No Kitsune, can you make the bridge of peace the shinobi world so much needs. Do you have what it takes to become the best Hokage," said Itachi rather loudly at the end.

Naruto looked up to stare into Itachi's eyes, Rinnegan meeting Sharigan. Itachi was taken aback by those eyes, full of determination, guts and will, stronger than steel.

"You bet!"

**So, that was the second chapter. Please review guys, I really want them badly. As for Kushina's part, I've already decided when she'll come in the fic: it will be just after the preliminaries, so don't sweat it! Well, Ja ne!**


	3. Abilities, Training & Feelings

**Hey guys! Thanks for all the reviews, I really appreciate it! As expected I got pretty pissed off flames regarding Hinata in the Harem and lost some readers in the process, oh well, I took the risk. I've decided to reveal the Harem and it's gonna be pretty large, so brace yourselves-**

**Naruto/Harem- Kushina, Mikoto, Mei, Fem. Kyuubi, Konan, Samui, Yugito, Tayuya, Kin, Hinata, Guren, Temari, Kurenai, Anko, Yugao, Hana.**

**Sorry, if you guys wanted a smaller Harem but this FINAL. I just wanted to ask if you wanted Ino in the harem or not. So here's the third chapter you've all been waiting for. Here goes-**

**Chapter-3-Abilities, Training & Feelings**

"You bet!", said Naruto with determination.

"Very well, but before we start training, I want you to read this scroll. It states all the abilities of Rinnegan, it's origins, stages & it's relation to the Uzumaki Clan", said Itachi taking out a big scroll from a sealing scroll before giving it to Naruto.

"U-Uzumaki Clan?", asked a startled Naruto.

"First read this scroll. I will answer your questions later", said Itachi.

Naruto nodded before opening the scroll and started reading it-

_Rinnegan was the blood inheritance limit of Rikudou Sennin. The Rinnegan was regarded as the God of Creation when the world was racked with chaos & as a weapon of destruction which could return everything to nothingness. Usage of Rinnegan is said to give the user strong affinities for all six forms of chakra nature manipulations namely: Wind, Fire, Water, Lightning, Earth & Gravity._

_It also gives strong affinities for sub-elements, which today are present in clans possessing one or two of these elements. But a Rinnegan user can master all the basic and sub-elements but needs large amounts of training, especially to master the sub-elements. Sub-elements are also called Secondary Elements as they are the combination of two basic elements. Some of these elements are-Boil, Ice, Wood, Storm, Lava, Scorch etc._

_However, there are those elements which are very rare and extremely difficult to master, which are called tertiary elements, also falling in the abilities of Rinnegan. At the present there are only three present known tertiary elements- Dust, Crystal & Steel. Some shinobi or clans have been known to use these rare elements, either by the process of Kekie Touta(Bloodline Selection) or they already have bloodline limit for these elements. These elements are combination of three elements. Following are given the composition of the commonly known Secondary & Tertiary elements-_

_Boil- Fire + Water (Fire & Water in 2:1, otherwise they will simply cancel each other)_

_Ice- Wind + Water (Wind & Water in equal amounts)_

_Wood- Earth + Water (Earth & Water in equal amounts)_

_Storm- Water + Lightning ( Water & Lightning in 3:1)_

_Lava- Earth + Fire ( Earth & Fire in equal amounts)_

_Scorch- Wind + Fire ( Wind & Fire in 2:1)_

_Dust- Earth + Wind + Fire ( Earth, Fire & Dust in equal amounts)_

_Crystal- Wind + Water + Lightning ( Wind, Water & Lightning in equal amounts)_

_Steel- Fire + Lightning + Earth ( Fire, Lightning & Earth in equal amounts)_

_Rinnegan has four different levels. These are-_

_Level 1-__ When Rinnegan is activated, the user is automatically on level one identified by one black ring around the black dot-like pupil. It's abilities are- physical enhancement, increased chakra reserves, better chakra control, affinities for any three basic elements in addition to gravity element is granted, can see chakra like Byakugan though at a lower level and the user can sign multiple summoning contracts._

_Level 2-__ When level two of Rinnegan is activated, two black rings (Concentric circles) can be seen surrounding a black dot-like pupil. The abilities which come with second stage are- slight increase in chakra reserves, chakra control is improved drastically, one more basic element affinity is added to your arsenal, ninjutsu and taijutsu can be copied upto some extent except the bloodlines, fast movements can be seen & predicted which are not visible to naked eye, the user is not affected by genjutsu upto A-rank, and lastly chakra can be seen in more detail but still lesser than Byakugan._

_Level 3-__ When level three of Rinnegan is activated, three black rings can be seen surrounding a black dot-like pupil. It's abilities include- improved chakra control so much that with enough practise, the user can do upto A-rank jutsus without any handseals, last of the six basic element's affinity is now unlocked and also the user can see chakra points like Byakugan._

_Level-4-__**Kageyoshi Rinnegan**_(Vibrant Display of the Ocular Eye)_: This is the highest known level that any Rinnegan user can attain & only Rikudou sennin is said to have accomplished this level. In this upgrade, the appearance of Rinnegan changes noticeably. There are four ring but glowing yellow in colour surrounding a dark blue dot-like pupil. Due to this glowing ability of Rinnegan in fourth stage, you can say that the user is granted nightvision upto some extent. It's other abilities are- Chibaku Tensie (Bursting Earth Celestial Body), Izanagi( Forefather God) and the user can revive a dead person by using some of his life force. Although, there might be some other abilities since not much is known about the fourth stage. _

_Chibaku Tensie and Izanagi are one of the strongest techniques in the world. Much more is explained about these two in separate scrolls which requires chakra of a Rinnegan user to open them due to a chakra receptor seal, as the chakra of a Rinnegan user is unique. Only users possessing the level four can open these scrolls. One should also keep in mind that this scroll does not state all the abilities of the Rinnegan, there may be some that the user may discover by himself._

_However, there are some other techniques which are only special to Rinnegan and are gravity based which are explained in detail in gravity manipulation scrolls._

_It was said that the Senju clan were descendants of Rikudou Senin's doujutsu, but some say that it was the Uzumaki clan that acquired the genes for the Rinnegan. However, it is said that some people did activate Rinnegan before the formation of Senju, Uchiha or any other clan. But since then no one has been able to activate it. In ancient scrolls, it is stated that during the activation, the person leaks white chakra temporarily, which was said to be possessed by Rikudou sennin. After the activation, the chakra is said to turn back to normal blue colour._

_It is also said that when the user sees someone close to him die, the pain causes him to awaken the Rinnegan. But today the existence of Rinnegan is denied by almost all of the Shinobi, stating that as only a myth. _

_One last thing is that nobody knows how to unlock the second, third & fourth levels, just like the tomoes of Sharingan. It might happen when a user experiences immense pain, emotional stress or during the heat of the battle._

_Some abilities of Rinnegan are still unknown, but it truly is the most powerful doujutsu in the world._

Naruto just remained silent after reading the scroll, contemplating on the information he just read about his doujutsu and what Itachi told him until now.

Itachi stared at the new transformed Naruto, wanting to see how Naruto would take such infor-

"YEAH!", the author was interrupted by a loud shout of joy as Naruto whooped his fist in the air, in the process dropping the large scroll.

"I've got the best doujutsu in the world. HA! Take that Sasuke-teme! I have a bloodline, & guess what, it's better than yours. I'll become the strongest shinobi in Konoha and then the Hokage. That old monkey really needs a retirement dattebayo!", said Naruto as the dam of emotions he's been keeping in check broke.

Itachi to restrain himself from laughing at that last comment. He totally agreed with Naruto, Konoha needed Minato's Successor.

'_He really is your son Kushina-sensie. I see he inherited some of the anxiety & excited quirks you had'_, thought Itachi while remembering his sensie's habits.

"So what are you going to teach me Itachi-sensie. I know my three basic elements would be awesome. Are you going to teach me some ultra cool super jutsu? And how do I control my Rinnegan? Tell me! Tell me! TELL ME DATTEBAYO!", said an excited Naruto with stars in his oceanic blue eyes.

Although Naruto was far mentally matured than anyone of his age, he was still a sucker for ninjutsu and boy was he excited about his bloodline abilities.

'_Hmm, Itachi-sensie, I like the sound of that'_, thought Itachi.

"Calm down Naruto-kun. First we're gonna work on synchronising your body and mind with each other. You still can't control your body remember?", said Itachi not wanting Naruto to jump the gun.

"Damn!", Naruto slumped in his chair.

"First Naruto-kun, I'll explain to you the benefits of shadow clones and the reason it is stated in the forbidden scroll", said Itachi.

" I already know them. When a shadow clone dispels, all it's memories, experiences or in case of training- mentality progress, is transferred to the original user. One shadow clone cuts the time required to train in something in half as compared to that of only original user. But in my case, if I summon five hundred shadow clones, it will take me one by thousandth time to train in something than the original time required. Hence, it's a gift from Kami for shinobi with large chakra reserves. But it's downsides are that it causes a huge headache, when mass shadow clones are dispelled after training due to rush of information and it can kill people with low chakra reserves due to chakra exhaustion. Another reason it is stated forbidden because if it falls into the hands of a shinobi from another village, will you get the point. And before you ask me why didn't I train with shadow clones is because I had nothing to learn and the only thing I could do was try and improve my chakra control using the tree climbing exercises", said Naruto seriously.

Itachi blinked, then blinked again.

"H-How did you know all that. It's not even stated in the forbidden scroll", asked a surprised Itachi that a genin had learned the secret of shadow clones so quickly and you should know that if you are able to surprise Itachi then heads off to you.

"Well duh! I have been using a LARGE amount of shadow clones since I became a genin. You have to be a total idiot not to figure it out. And the rest, well it's pretty obvious", said Naruto off handedly.

'_He's a genius not to mention he has amazing analytical abilities! I can't believe how much talent he used to hide under all that acting'_, thought an amazed Itachi.

"Okay, now tell me earlier when you used half of your chakra reserves, how many shadow clones were you able to make?"

"Um, about two fifty. Why?"

'_He is mini-Kisame in terms of chakra'_, thought Itachi.

"Now you again use half of your chakra reserves. Let's see how many shadow clones you are able to make", said Itachi while Naruto shrugged.

"**Tajuu Kage Bunshin No Jutsu **(Mass Shadow Clone Jutsu)"

Neither of them were prepared for what they saw. They were atleast five hundred shadow clones yelling obscenities at Naruto as they were not able to stand.

'_Holy Shit!'_, both thought simultaneously.

"This... is half of your chakra reserves?", questioned Itachi dumbly.

"Whoa! My chakra reserves have sky rocketed along with my chakra control. I could easily mould my chakra this time", said an excited Naruto.

After coming over his initial shock, Itachi ordered Naruto's clones to start training to control their bodies. All you could see were a bunch of 12 year toddlers trying to walk properly while the original Naruto was still in his chair.

"Itachi-sensie, whenever I use chakra after awakening my Rinnegan, I get this warm feeling. I feel very peaceful when it flows through my chakra coils, my chakra is so light but at the same time very strong. I just don't know how to describe it", said a perplexed Naruto while Itachi nodded.

"I don't know how, but your chakra nature has changed. It is now white in colour like the Rikudou Sennin. I also felt it, when you used chakra. While using Sharingan, all I can see is white chakra flowing through your coils with a mixture of red in it"

"But how? White chakra was supposed to be temporary, not permanent. But its not bad, is it", asked Naruto but it sounded more as a statement.

"Absolutely not Naruto-kun. The fact that your chakra is white means you have light type chakra which is very pure and only the Rikudou Sennin was said to have possessed it in the past"

"Guess I have to ask jiji about this", pondered Naruto.

"While your clones train, let's check which basic elements you have now along with gravity", said Itachi handing him a chakra paper.

When Naruto channelled his chakra through the chakra paper, first it started floating in midair, then one-third part of the paper crinkled and burst into intense sparks of electricity, then two-third part of paper was completely dissolved in water almost to molecular level and the last part was torn to millions of small bits of paper due to the unreal amount of cuts it received.

Itachi whistled at the display.

"As expected, you have very strong affinities for all your current elements as stated in the scroll. Your current elements are- Wind, Water, Lightning & Gravitation. The other elements are- Ice, Storm & Crystal", said Itachi.

"I'm so awesome! So Itachi sensie, what jutsus are you going to teach me? Will I able to use ice jutsus like Haku, huh?", said Naruto as he was practically beaming with excitement.

"You shouldn't take your training lightly Naruto-kun. Nature manipulation of even basic elements takes years to master, let alone secondary or tertiary elements", seeing Naruto down, he continued.

"But with around a thousand shadow clones for two months, I'm sure you can master ice and storm along with basic elements. I'm not sure about crystal though as it is a tertiary element and as such extremely difficult to master", said Itachi while Naruto's clones were training (don't know if you can call trying to walk training).

"Then I'm going to train as hard as I can. I'll show them I am not a dead last", said a determined Naruto as he too started training.

While Itachi took out a 'very' familiar brand new orange book with a title 'ICHA ICHA-IN THE BED TACTICS' with a golden strip at the bottom on which was written-'Ultra Limited Gold Collector's Platinum Edition'. On the top left was the author's stamp- 'The Gallant Toad Sage- JIRAIYA SAMA!'. In the middle of the front cover was a 'drawn' picture of a long spiky white haired man giggling perversely while he was groping a blond haired woman's voluptuous breasts & was giving a 'V' for victory sign. The blonde haired woman had her hair in two thin ponytails ( guess who the woman is and get a cookie). Just below the picture was written- Heaven hath no pleasure like a blondie fucked!

'Hm, why does this chick seem familiar', thought a suspicious Itachi. He shrugged and opened the book as he started reading while giggling perversely as blood started seeping out of his nose.

One of Naruto's clones upon seeing Itachi thought, _'He is reading that same orange book while giggling just like Kakashi-sensie. I've got to find out what's so funny'_.

**Timeskip: After half an hour in Tsukiyomi**

After relentlessly practising for half an hour with five hundred shadow clones, Naruto was finally synchronised with his body and his shadow clones were now sparring among themselves.

He was surprised to find out the increase in his strength and speed. He was expecting his body to be stronger but not that much. Itachi too was surprised a bit.

'_His speed and strength is upto low-jounin level right now but he can be easily taken down in taijutsu by an experienced jounin'_, thought Itachi after observing Naruto for a while.

"Alright Naruto, that's enough. Now dispel all your shadow clones, twenty at a time", said Itachi as he put his precious book back in his robe. Naruto nodded as he dispelled all his clones after sometime and felt a mild headache.

"Well, that wasn't much", said Naruto before his stomach groaned as he blushed in embarrassment.

"Hey, why am I feeling hungry?", asked a confused Naruto.

"Genjutsu affects all your five senses Naruto-kun. Hence, Tsukiyomi is making your mind believe that all that workout you did was real, thus you feel hungry. You should eat something", said Itachi.

"Um okay, but before that, can you change my clothes. This orange jumpsuit is pathetic", said Naruto.

Itachi was surprised after hearing him. "But I thought you liked your clothing", said Itachi.

"I guess it's due to the changes in my DNA", shrugged Naruto.

'_Ofcourse! Due to the altercations in his DNA, his personality would change too. But I'm surprised he still has retained some of it'_, thought Itachi.

"So you're change my clothes or what", asked an impatient Naruto. Itachi nodded while thinking of something that would suit Naruto.

'_I know just the right thing. It's about time, Naruto followed his father's footsteps'_, thought a smirking Itachi.

Itachi waved his hands as Naruto's orange jumpsuit was replaced by his new clothes. His new outfit consisted of black sleeveless jounin-like vest under which was a dark blue sweat shirt along with dark blue shinobi pants. There were typical kunai holsters and shuriken pouches on his left thigh. His sweat shirt was tied to his wrists and just below his elbows with orange laces so that the flaps don't get in the way. He had an white high neck cape reaching to just below his knees. On the back of his cape was the Uzumaki clan symbol (circular concentric swirls) in purple and black flames were licking his cape at the bottom and at the bottom of short sleeves of the cape. He took a look at his outfit.

"Cool! Do you have this same clothing out there", asked an excited Naruto.

"As a matter of fact, Hokage-sama did give me this specific outfit for you. He stated that it was time for a change", said Itachi while Naruto nodded as he began to check out his cape.

"Naruto-kun, what would you want to eat?", asked Itachi expecting a change in his answer from before.

"RAMEN!", shouted a grinning Naruto as he pumped his fist in air while Itachi face vaulted.

'_Even the legendary Rinnegan couldn't defeat his obsession for Ramen'_, thought Itachi while a table appeared with several bowls of steaming Ramen.

Naruto had stars in his eyes as he began wolfing down Ramen like it was soon going to go extinct. After a few minutes, he was finished as he patted his stomach.

"Man, that was good. I should come here more often", said Naruto with a contended sigh.

"I cannot do this jutsu when I just feel like it. As the powers of Mangekyou Sharingan are used, overtime the user gets blind. However, what matters is the quantity and not durability. For example- if I use Tsukiyomi a numerous times, I will get blind easily. But if I use the Tsukiyomi for the same amount of time but only once, it will have less effect on my eyes which is the exact think I'm doing right now", explained Itachi seriously.

Naruto's eyes widened as he heard the side effects of Mangekyou Sharingan. He was even more surprised that someone would do this for him even if he was ordered by the Hokage as an S-ranked mission could be declined.

"I...I really appreciate you using such jutsu for me Itachi-sensie", said Naruto with a lump in his throat as he bowed his head.

"No worries Naruto-kun. But enough talk, from now on you will train extensively for two months. Also I want to tell you that with your improved chakra control, you can also learn genjutsu, although at this point of time you can only learn upto C-rank ones. Now, first you have to completely master you three basic elements before moving to your secondary or tertiary elements. First create a thousand shadow clones", said Itachi as the environment around him changed to that of a beautiful forest . There were green lush trees everywhere surrounding them with a huge waterfall in the middle.

Naruto was not too sure about the genjutsu part, but for the first time in his life someone was willingly teaching him something and he would be damned if he wasted this opportunity. So he nodded as he created a thousand shadow clones and was panting by the end of it but recovered via food pill while Itachi unsealed three scrolls each having a kanji for Wind, Water & Lightning.

"Good, now I want three groups of two fifty shadow clones to take a scroll of each element and train according to the instructions. The rest two fifty will come with me for genjutsu training", said Itachi as he went with other clones to start two long months of training or rather twenty short seconds in the outer world.

**At Hokage's Office-Before the Orochimaru's Attack**

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat in his office behind his desk while smoking as he rubbed his temples.

'_This is really not my day. Why do I have to face the wrath of those four. They sure aren't going to spare me when they hear what I have planned for Naruto-kun in the forest of death'_, thought the Hokage while he was sweating bullets.

In front of him stood the famous four ice-queens of Konoha who have never gone on a date with any man. While they were only nineteen years old, they had the body of a goddess. Each having her own traits. They were the hottest and most wanted kunoichi in the village and probably the most dangerous. They were always found in group and watched each other's backs. All of them were prodigies in their own way having made jounin at the age of sixteen and were best friends.

The first was a woman of striking beauty with milk creamy flawless skin. Her black curly hair, red lipstick, bluish eyelids and crimson eyes only added to her appearance. She had all the curves in the right places with luscious D-cup breasts, slim waist & toned legs. She wore a red short-sleeve loose shirt over which were white wrappings covering the upper half of her body to her upper thighs while having a leaf hitai-ate on her forehead.

The second was a sexy woman with a tan flawless skin having purple pineapple-like hair, no lipstick and brown eyes. She wore a rather revealing fishnet almost showing her D-cup breasts with a peach coloured trench coat and a 'very' short skirt easily crossing the boundary of appropriate.

The third was also a beautiful woman having brown hair, black eyes, reddish pink lipstick, blue stripe markings on her cheeks, two longer than normal canines, C-cup breasts and her skin tone was the fairest amongst them. She wore a typical jounin attire with the exception that she wore tight black shorts instead of dark blue shinobi pants.

And the last of them was a woman of amazing beauty. She had long blue silky hair, emerald green shining eyes, blue lipstick, C-cup breasts, amazingly soft creamy skin for a kenjutsu user like her and had two swords wrapped to her back. She wore a typical jounin attire with the exception of having an armour in place of a jounin vest which accentuated her figure all the more.

They were Yuhi Kurenai- Genjutsu Mistress of Konoha specialising in Genjutsu who already had taken a team this year, Mitarashi Anko- Snake Mistress of Konoha specialising in ninjutsu just like her teacher and was an Interrogation & a Torture specialist, Inuzuka Hana- Inuzuka heiress of Konoha specialising in taijutsu and her clan's techniques who was currently working as a vet and Uzuki Yugao- Kenjutsu Mistress of Konoha specialising in kenjutsu who had recently left the Anbu and became a jounin.

Each of these four had different personalities. Kurenai was calm, collected and social, Anko was loud, brash, and spontaneous, Hana had her typical Inuzuka fiery personality with a touch of softness and Yugao was a serious and a reserved kunoichi but she had her moments.

But these four kunoichi had one thing in common, they liked a certain blonde to death. His sun-kissed blonde hair, whisker marks and electric oceanic blue eyes made him incredibly cute to them. Just like Anko, they liked his attitude and kind personality. And his foxy grin, oh how it made their heart melt. They all knew of his mask and understood his reason for acting loud and obnoxious. They always saved him from those stupid villagers time to time but didn't let him know who they were courtesy of their Hokage. They were ordered by the him not to approach the boy as he didn't quite trust them like the villagers and other shinobi.

They practically begged to Hiruzen in the past to let them be near the boy but he didn't fudge from his decision. Thus they always remained indifferent to him. And now they were standing in front of the him because he requested all of them in his office while for some reason had sent his anbu out and activated the private seals.

"What do you want Hokage-sama?", asked Kurenai in a cold tone while Hana & Anko were glaring at him whereas Yugao just remained emotionless.

Sarutobi winced at the tone. If thry was anybody else, he immediately would have punished him/her but he understood their situation and that was the reason he called them. He sighed before speaking the only words that would get their full attention.

"It's about... Naruto", said the aged Hokage as he closed his eyes. The next thing he knew, he was barged with questions from them at the same time.

"What happened to Naru-chan?"

"Is Naruto-kun alright?"

"Grrr, What did they do this time?"

"If the villagers did something to him, I'm gonna rip their heads off with my blades", said Anko, Kurenai, Hana & Yugao simultaneously, worry written all over their face for their favourite blonde.

"Relax! Relax! I assure you nothing has happened to Naruto-kun...yet", said Sarutobi nervously.

Kurenai narrowed her eyes dangerously, "What will happen to him? You tell us right this instant or I'll trap you in a yaoi genjutsu with a naked Gai", warned Kurenai while Sarutobi paled at the implications of the jutsu.

'_That genjutsu should be a forbidden S-rank'_, thought the nervous Hokage.

"Y-You see, it's for his own good", Hiruzen tried to explain.

"JUST TELL US WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING TO HAPPEN ALREADY", shouted an impatient Hana.

"Alright, but first you must know about the circumstances concerning the Uchiha massacre. Just keep in mind that it's a forbidden secret, so don't tell anyone", said Sarutobi seriously.

For next ten minutes, he told them about Itachi being his undercover agent and reasons regarding the Uchiha Massacre. They were all shocked just like Naruto but quickly recovered as Naruto was their first priority.

"But what does this have to do with Naruto-kun Hokage-sama", asked Yugao with a hint of irritation in her voice.

"It has everything to do with Naruto-kun. Yesterday, Itachi came to the village along his companion for the time being to inform me about an organisation he recently joined called Akatsuki"

"Akatsuki?", asked Kurenai

"It is an organisation consisting of ten to twelve extremely powerful S-ranked missing-nins which aims to collect all the nine bijuu in the world, which means they have to hunt down the jinchuriki", explained Hiruzen while all of their eyes widened.

"Then that means they're after Naru-chan too", whispered Anko.

"Indeed, and if they succeed in capturing Naruto and extracting the Kyuubi, he will die", said the aged professor with a frown with his hands folded under his chin.

"If they even so much as touch a hair of Naru-kun, I'll rip them to shreds", growled Hana while showing her clawed nails.

"I will protect Naruto-kun with my life", said Yugao seriously while the rest of three nodded with her.

"But the good news is that Itachi and Houshigaki Kisame, one of the seven swordsmen of the Mist who also works for me are assigned to capture Naruto-kun. So, he's safe for now". All of them breathed a sigh of relief, atleast they had some time to prepare.

"Then we must train him and make him stronger as fast as possible for the future battles Hokage-sama", said Yugao.

"That's what's going to happen in the forest of death. He's going to get very strong in a couple of minutes", said Sarutobi while inwardly smirking at their confused faces.

"What do you mean? Isn't he currently taking part in the Chunin exams?", asked a confused Kurenai.

"Naruto... has a...doujutsu", said Hiruzen with a dramatic pause.

'_Although, I'm not quite sure if he would awaken it'_, further thought the Hokage while all of their faces were priceless as if they were told that they were pregnant with Naruto's child.

'_I wish I had a camera'_, thought Hiruzen.

"B-But-", stuttered Anko.

"But we have never seen him any kind of bloodline limit. His eyes are always those beautiful, charming, exotic and a magnificent shade of deep cerulean blue", said Kurenai with a dreamy sigh.

"Yeah", other said in unison with a faraway look on their faces while Hiruzen sweatdropped at their antics.

'_If they ever see someone hurt Naruto, may Kami save him/her from these four'_. After that thought Sarutobi mentally grinned as an idea popped into his mind.

'_I know just the right punishment for Itachi for stealing my brand new Icha-Icha book'_, thought Sarutobi evilly.

After a cough from the Hokage, all the four ice-queens came out of their dreamland.

"His doujutsu hasn't been activated yet. That's why I have sent Itachi to help Naruto in activating it".

"Wait, but what is his doujutsu and how can Itachi awaken it?", asked a confused Hana.

"For your first question, I will only tell you that it's the strongest doujutsu the world has ever seen, even stronger than Sharingan and Byakugan. It's name is...Rinnegan"

"B-But Hokage-sama, that's only a myth!", said Yugao, disbelief clearly evident in her voice and on the faces of her friends.

"Well, we just have to see if it's a myth or not, wouldn't we?", said the professor with a smirk.

"But what is the role of Itachi in this?", asked Kurenai.

"We shall see in my crystal ball. It is about time that Itachi & Kisame intercepted team 7", said Hiruzen as he went over to his crystal ball with the four of them following him.

But they weren't prepared for what they saw. There standing in a clearing was Orochimaru who was holding a bruised and a battered Naruto by his neck.

"NARUTO-KUN!", shouted Kurenai while Anko was clenching her fists like she was ready to tear the crystal ball apart.

'_Damn you snake bastard! If my Naru-chan dies today, I'm gonna torture you so bad that your experiments would look like a dango'_, thought a furious Anko while Hana and her dogs were growling.

"Hokage-sama! We have to save him. I can't afford to lose him", said Yugao frantically.

"Curse you Orochimaru! You four, we're going there, NOW!", yelled the Hokage. Just as they were about to leave, Sarutobi saw a glimpse of the present scene in the crystal ball.

"WAIT!"

"WHAT NOW YOU OLD COOT. NARU-CHAN CAN DIE ANY SECOND NOW", shouted a frustrated Anko.

"Calm down. Itachi & Kisame are there, they'll take care of everything. There's no need for our interference in the second examination", said the Hokage while all of them breathed a sigh of relief. They then gathered around the crystal ball and saw that Orochimaru had fled the scene.

"Hey! What the hell is happening? Why is Naru-kun screaming and what is that white chakra", said Hana after observing for sometime. All of them had to shield their eyes as the crystal orb flared white due to the amount of white chakra that Naruto was exploding with.

"Even though I can't sense his chakra, I can still tell this white chakra is very powerful", said Kurenai while blocking her eyes.

"Hey! Would you kindly tell us what the hell is going on here", yelled Anko.

"To activate Rinnegan, Itachi used Tsukiyomi on Naruto and forced him to watch his loved ones get killed. The pain of losing someone precious led to the awakening of his doujutsu", explained the professor.

"He used that cursed jutsu on Naruto-kun? One that put Uchiha Sasuke in a coma for two weeks?", asked an incredulous Kurenai with a hint of anger.

"Grr, I'm gonna give that Itachi-baka a beating of his life", growled Hana.

"Count me in too Hana-chan", said Anko with a sadistic smile on her face. Hiruzen shuddered at seeing that smile. If she ever gave you that smile, may Kami spare your genitals.

"I just hope Naruto-kun comes out of this fine", said an out-of-character Yugao with worry written all over her face.

"Don't worry Yugao-chan, Naruto-kun is strong, he's beared much worse than this", said Kurenai as she hugged Yugao.

"I know Kure-chan. But it hurts me to see him in so much pain", said Yugao as she buried her face in Kurenai's shoulders while tears leaked out of her beautiful eyes as Naruto's screams increased in volume.

"All his life he was beaten by those damn villagers because of the Kyuubi. He didn't even know why he was hated until recently. He is innocent, kind-hearted and the purest person I've ever known. We had to watch him sit lonely at the parks while others played, we had to watch him..._'sniff'_... cry at nights while he begged for someone to embrace him. He is so lonely Kure-chan. His eyes clearly reflect all the sadness and pain he feels everyday. And now, he's going through so much pain and we can only watch. I .._'sniff'_... want to change those eyes. I want to hug him, kiss him, tell him that he's _'sniff'_ not alone and will never be. I love him so much even though he's younger than me. I just want my Naruto-kun in my arms. I'm tired of seeing him get hurt.", said Yugao as she broke into a fit of sobs while Kurenai comforted her as she wiped her own tears.

Sarutobi himself looked sad and ashamed at the foolishness of the villagers. He considered Naruto as his grandson just like Konohamaru and it pained him to see Naruto's life so miserable.

"We all love him deeply Yugao-chan. We're never going leave him even if Hokage-sama forbids us from approaching him", said Hana as she glared at the Hokage.

'_I'm sorry that your son's life was so miserable Minato. But I know that these four would be excellent for Naruto-kun'_, thought Sarutobi.

"I know that you four are very upset with my decision, but it was for Naruto-kun's safety. But now I deem it fit to raise the restrictions on approaching him", said the Hokage with a serene smile. Their eyes widened upon hearing him. After all those years, they could finally help him with his burden, they could finally give all the love they felt for their object of affection.

"You see Yugao-chan, we can see Naru-chan. Stop crying now already", said a grinning Anko while Yugao nodded happily as she wiped her tears and stood besides Kurenai.

"Thank you very much Hokage-sama", said Yugao as she bowed for the first time in years in front of the Hokage.

"You all can thank me by becoming Naruto-kun's future wives as he falls under the CRA", said a grinning Sarutobi. All of them blushed as they began dreaming about being Naruto's wives. (Yes, they already know about Naruto's heritage).

"Look! He stopped screaming", exclaimed Sarutobi.

All of them concentrated on the crystal orb to see Naruto covered with dust smoke. But when the smoke cleared, all of their jaws dropped on the ground. Even Hiruzen couldn't believe his eyes. Although the scroll did said 'physical enhancement', but this was absurd. He had total lady killer looks now.

While Anko and Hana were openly drooling at the sight of Naruto's muscular body, Kurenai & Yugao were blushing furiously. All of them could only summarise him in only one way.

'_HOT! STEAMY HOT!'_

When Naruto lifted his head, they all gasped upon seeing his eyes.

"Is that the...Rinnegan?", whispered Kurenai finding his eyes even more attractive now.

"Wow! Naru-chan looks even more sexy with those eyes", said Anko.

" He really has awakened a legendary & a mythical doujutsu", said Hiruzen as he stared at the all-powerful Rinnegan. To read about Rinnegan was one thing, but to see it, was on a whole another level.

"Well what did you expect old man. Naru-chan is amazing after all", said a grinning Anko with pride in her voice while Sarutobi's eyebrows twitched in annoyance.

"I'M NOT OLD!", yelled an angry Hokage.

"Then what, you dyed you hair white, old man?", asked Anko innocently. A tic mark appeared on his head forehead while the others snickered.

"I can still stop you from approaching Naruto-kun you know that?", said a smirking Sarutobi. All of them stopped snickering immediately while words like ' old monkeys being too smart for their own good'.

"So now what, I can see that Naru-kun isn't used to his new body", said Hana while glancing worriedly at the current scene as Naruto fell face-first on the ground. Hiruzen nodded as he told them of his plans for training Naruto in twenty seconds.

"That's an excellent idea Hokage-sama", said Yugao while the others nodded with her. Just as he was about to reply all of them heard a knock on his door.

"Enter", said Sarutobi as he deactivated the seals. The door opened to reveal his secretary.

"Hokage-sama! Mizukage-sama has arrived and Raikage-sama has been sighted approaching the village gates"

**So guys, did you like it? While I lost some readers mainly because of NaruHina, some also quit reading my fic saying that it was poorly written. So yeah, please guys, I'm trying really hard, tell me about my writing mistakes so that I can write better. This is my first fanfic after all, so I will make many mistakes, you're only ones I can rely on for improving my fic. And also don't flame me for making the ice queens a bit younger, I wanted to close the age gap a bit.**

**And oh, I wanted some ideas from you guys regarding the summons as Naruto can sign multiple summoning contracts. I want pretty unique summons which are not used commonly, so your ideas would be greatly appreciated. I also needed your advice in how should I change Hinata's personality, maybe Naruto using Rinnegan's ability or something, I'm not sure. Her behaviour is a bit frustrating for me and I just want to change her as quickly as possible. And please review, I would be hoping for even greater reviews than the second chapter. Well, Ja ne!**


	4. The Triangular Alliance

**Here you go, I've corrected some errors in this chapter. Hey guys, thanks a lot for the reviews & support you've shown me until now. Sorry for the late update, but I have my engineering entrance exam on 1****st**** may. And thanks for your opinion about the summons, they were very helpful. About the changing Hinata part, I've taken an idea from a review I got. When the time comes, I'll give him the credit as I really liked the idea. Now, there have been several questions that I think should be answered.**

**First of all, I know that the way I set up the NaruHina pairing was the worst way an author could do it, I know one cannot fall in love with someone if they don't even talk to each other. But there was a main reason that I added Hinata into the harem other than me wanting to write one, Hinata was supposed to be the catalyst for activating his doujutsu. Naruto did watched the Sandaime, Teuchi & Ayame die, but they weren't close enough. I had to add someone who was really close to him, a pure hearted one & someone who Naruto loved very much and loved him back, who would be better than Hinata in this case? If I did NaruHina pairing in a hurry, it doesn't mean every other girl would be paired this way- Oh! I've watched you suffer from the sidelines & now I'm here to make up for it!. NO! It wouldn't be that way. **

**On to the other questions, I think some guys still don't understand the concept of training in Tsukiyomi as they are asking questions if he would be really strong as he's only training his mind while in reality he's just standing. Well, he's only training in ninjutsu & genjutsu in which you need to know- how to mould chakra, handseals, minimum amount of chakra required to perform the jutsu & some tweaks to improve on the jutsus which Itachi might give him, etc. All these points are only related to mind training, things which he has to accumulate in his mind, he just needs to know how to perform the jutsus. Example- when I mentioned taijutsus katas, I only meant memorising those moves as he had already synchronised his body with his mind. This was the main reason for the physical enhancement part, improving his body so that it is eligible for atleast some mid-level taijutsu style, so that it can withstand the strain of atleast performing B-rank jutsus or above. However, it doesn't mean that after the training he would be performing the S-rank jutsus one after the other. For his three basic elements, he might know one or two S-rank ones for each element, but for his sub-elements, his arsenal would only be limited to C or B( in a rare case)-rank ones. Genjutsu, I already stated he could learn them upto C-rank ones. So yeah, he still has a lot of training to do- especially in the sub-elements to completely master them. **

**About harem, nobody had a problem with Ino, so she's in. About Kushina, I've decided that she would come just after the preliminaries. How? You have to wait & see. For Mikoto, she would come too. How? That too you have to wait & see. If there was anything I forgot to explain, I'll try explaining in the next chapter.**

**Now with the explanations done, here's the fourth chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-4-The Triangular Alliance<strong>

* * *

><p>"What! Weren't they supposed to come after one month during the third exams", said a surprised Hana while the others were shocked too.<p>

"Hai, but I called an emergency meeting due to the Akatsuki", said Sarutobi as he turned to his secretary.

"Send them in Akane-san"

"Hai Hokage-sama!", bowed the secretary before leaving.

"Alright you four, I wished we could see more of the events concerning Naruto-kun, but you have to leave now", said Hiruzen while all of them groaned as they really wanted to see the results of Naruto's training.

"Oh and Kurenai, I want you to enter the Forest of Death and keep following team 7. I'm sure Orochimaru came for a reason and I want you to report any abnormalities. Also, don't interfere in the exams or try to help your team, is that understood?", said the professor with a serious demeanour.

"Hai Hokage-sama", said a happy Kurenai.

"Hey, why does Nai-chan get this mission", yelled Anko while Hana & Yugao were glaring at the Hokage.

"Because Anko, Kurenai is a genjutsu expert and she can easily blend in with the surroundings and hide her presence", replied Sarutobi calmly.

"Tough luck Anko-chan, Yugao-chan, Hana-chan", said a grinning Kurenai before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"Damn her!", all three of them muttered simultaneously before shunshining out of the office. Sarutobi sighed at their antics, even if they were matured as a shinobi, they were like kids or sometimes even acted like fangirls when it came to Naruto, but one thing that he was sure about was that they loved him deeply. He had seen their eyes whenever they talked about Naruto or watched him, they were filled with love, compassion, affection, care and today, a new feeling took birth in those eyes: lust. After seeing Naruto's transformation, their eyes still had the loving gaze for him but with a hint of lust.

He sighed as he came out of his musings, _'Now to face the Raikage & the Mizukage, hope this goes well too'_, he thought as he went over to his desk waiting for them to arrive.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile in the Forest of Death- The clearing- Twenty Seconds after the beginning of Tsukiyomi<strong>

* * *

><p>Kisame was panting, but not much due to the loss of so much chakra. He began to feel tired at about ten seconds after he started giving Itachi his chakra. If you think rationally, it would look absurd that such high amount of chakra could be depleted in just twenty seconds, which Kisame was currently wondering about.<p>

After a few seconds, Naruto and Itachi slowly opened their eyes. Itachi, to reveal his Mangekyou Sharingan while he too was panting heavily and Naruto, to reveal his Rinnegan with 'one' black ring. No one noticed when his eyes glowed silver for a bit before turning into the same Rinnegan(level 1), not even Naruto noticed it as his vision was blurry due to the effects of Tsukiyomi but after a few seconds, it cleared for him to see Itachi on his knees panting heavily while blood oozed out of his eyes.

"Itachi-sensei! Are you alright?", asked a concerned Naruto while Kisame released him from his hold as he regained his breadth.

"Itachi, you _'pant'_ okay?", asked Kisame while Naruto took out a food pill and gave it to Itachi.

"Yeah…_'pant' 'pant' 'pant'_ I'm _'pant'_ gonna be alright", said a tired Itachi before eating the food pill. After a few seconds, he began to feel his chakra getting restored as he stood up.

"Sensei, are you alright now? And why did blood came out of your eyes?", asked a worried Naruto.

"That is a side-effect of using Mangekyou Sharingan's techniques for a long time", said Itachi as Naruto nodded in understanding while he turned to Kisame.

"Long time no see Sharkface", said a smirking Naruto.

"Tch, it's only been twenty seconds brat", said Kisame while his eyebrows twitched at his nickname.

"Oh right! Sorry, I forgot about that",said Naruto while he grinned sheepishly.

"So how did the brat's training go Itachi", asked Kisame.

Itachi smirked, " Well, let's just say that Naruto-kun is a lot stronger than what a chunin is supposed to be", while Naruto puffed out his chest in pride.

"Aww, that's a pity. The brat's still no match for me. And I was thinking he would get more stronger", mock frowned Kisame. A tic mark appeared on Naruto's forehead but he decided to play it cool.

"Hm? You said something sharkface?", asked Naruto innocently.

"Why you-", growled Kisame before he was interrupted.

"Can it Kisame. We don't have time much time", said Itachi calmly while Kisame 'hmphed' in response.

' _Hehe. Gotta thank Kakashi-sensei for that'_, thought a smirking Naruto.

"Naruto", said Itachi gaining his attention while taking out a small sealing scroll from under his Akatsuki robes.

"Here, this scroll contains the same outfit that Hokage-sama gave me", said Itachi as he threw the scroll in Naruto's direction.

"Thanks sensei", said Naruto after catching the scroll.

"Before we go, I want you to know that after this exam, preliminaries would take place before the third examination where the contestants would fight each other. I know that it will be tough just after the second examination, but it is mainly to weed out some gennins before the third exams", said Itachi.

"But why eliminate the contestants who passed the second exam", said a confused Naruto.

"According to Hokage-sama, there is a competitive batch this year and he's sure that many genins will pass the second exam. In the third exams, the genins fight each other in front of the nobles and merchants from all over the world, hence we can't waste their time and therefore only a limited number of fights can happen", explained Itachi while Naruto nodded in understanding.

"Also, the Raikage, Mizukage , Hokage and almost all the jounins of Konoha will watch the preliminaries closely. So don't hold back and show them what you can do. About your doujutsu, I think you should reveal it in the preliminaries too. Believe me, you would love the look on their faces", said Itachi as he remembered his clan member's faces when he activated Sharingan at an early age while Kisame remained quiet and Naruto nodded.

" I hope we meet again Naruto-kun and if possible, keep a watch on Sasuke"

"I will try sensei and thanks for everything", said Naruto as Itachi nodded.

"Until next time brat", said a grinning Kisame before the Akatsuki duo shunshined out of the clearing while Itachi did some handseals to deactivate the barriers.

Naruto could only sigh as he recalled all the events that happened since the start of the second exams. First that Orochi-teme attacks them and then Itachi & Kisame interferred. Who would've thought? The disgraced child of the village possessing a legendary doujutsu such as Rinnegan. Oh he would enjoy the look on their faces, but right now, he just wanted to get some sleep.

"Guess I'll have to wake Sakura up. But I should change my clothes first", said Naruto as he looked around the clearing/battlefield to find a large tree with a big cave in its trunk. He went in there and after a couple of minutes came out in his new favourite shinobi wear. He then went over to Sakura to wake her up wondering how will Sakura & Sasuke and most of the village will take to his new-found abilities.

"Hey Sakura, wake up", said Naruto as he nudged her on the shoulder. She had some bruises here and there, but was otherwise alright.

"Just one minute", mumbled Sakura.

"C'mon, we're in the forest of death, remember", said Naruto as he lightly flicked her forehead. Eventually Sakura opened her eyes to see Naruto bent down in front of her.

"Naruto? What happened?", asked Sakura with blurry eyes as she slowly remembered all the events that tool place while her eyes widened.

"Hey! Where's Orochimaru and what happened to Sasuke-kun", asked Sakura frantically as she quickly stood up.

"Sasuke's right there", said Naruto as he pointed in Sasuke's direction. Before following his finger, she saw Naruto properly for the first time after she woke up. She immediately blushed a furious red upon seeing him.

'_Whoa! Who's this hunk'_, said Inner Sakura

"Um, who are you?", asked Sakura with a blush while Naruto sweatdropped as he thought,

'_Did I really change that much'_

"Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto. Nice to meet you", said Naruto in a mock greeting while he extended his hand.

"Oh, it's nice to meet you Uzumaki-san. I- WAIT WHAT!", exclaimed Sakura who first shook his hand but then realised a bit too late while in Naruto's head, a chibi Naruto was laughing his ass off.

'_She….She fell for it. Oh damn, …..I can't believe it!'_

"Naruto? What happened to you? You've suddenly grown and what's the change in your clothes", asked a surprised Sakura but he was even more surprised by her reply. He thought that she would lash at him any minute now while screeching like-"SASUKE-KUN IS MUCH BETTER THAN YOU".

"Well, let's just say I underwent a transformation during my fight with Orochimaru and I became tired of my jumpsuit. To answer your previous question, Orochimaru fled the scene due to the circumstances I can't tell you", said Naruto with a frown as he knew where this was going.

"But why can't you tell me. I'm your teammate and we should trust each other", said a hurt Sakura. After witnessing some of Naruto's fight with Orochimaru today, her views of Naruto somewhat changed. She could now clearly see that Naruto was easily the strongest member of the team and even though he was obnoxious and rash, he deserved some respect.

"Since WHEN were we teammates Sakura? What you're stating now is something you should've said on the day of team selections which I did said to you, but the only reply I got was a lump on my head. Since when was it about teamwork, especially with me? You guys never bothered to even acknowledge me as a teammate. On the day of the bell test, when my shadow clone came to your hiding spot, you didn't even bothered to listen to me, instead just dispelled it by punching it. The same happened to the shadow clone who approached Sasuke, stating that I was a loser & would only hinder his progress. Do you know why I came to you guys, huh? Do you? I came to tell you about the actual meaning of the test i.e . teamwork while I fought Kakashi-sensei", said Naruto.

"B-But I thought you were just trying to be the hero, taking a jounin head on", stuttered Sakura.

"Just because I acted loud, obnoxious & stupid doesn't mean that I was one. The first time during the academy I approached you, I wanted to be friends with you, but you just ignored me. I always strived for acknowledgement & recognition, I had no one to take care of me while you had parents, relatives & friends. You can't judge a person just by his appearance. Take our Hokage for example, does he look harmful to you? I'm sure you would've thought-' Oh he's just a grandfather material. What can the old coot do? He would probably break his back if he bends even once. But he's Hiruzen Sarutobi- the famed professor, trained by the Nidaime & the teacher of three legendary Sannins, the man who survived the two great shinobi wars and has mastered every ninja art of this village. He can still take on an army of jounins without a sweat. Appearances are the biggest deceptions for a shinobi, seeing Kakashi-sensei's lazy attitude, you would've thought he would be taken down rather easily by a surprise attack, but he's always dead on alert and ready for any kind of attack.

If you would've tried to know me, you could've seen the real me. You guys, the rookie nine don't have the flukest of idea about what kind of burden I carry everyday. My life has no place even in the most hellish nightmares you have ever seen. I dare you or anyone in this village to live my life for atleast one month, then you'll know what Uzumaki Naruto is all about, then you'll know the story of the so-called 'deadlast'!", said Naruto angrily while Sakura was shocked to the core.

'_All that was…just a mask? A mask that none of us could see through? We always thought that he was the weakest of us, but in reality… he was the strongest, much stronger than us'_

"But the bottomline is that you've nothing to gain my trust Sakura & you know it. So don't even bother asking anything", said Naruto in a cold tone while he went over to Sasuke and slunged him on his back.

Meanwhile, Sakura bowed her head in shame as she remembered all the times when she looked down on Naruto for no apparent reason. She will make sure that she'll atleast be able to remain friends with him.

'_I'm sorry Naruto, but from now on, I'll treat you with the respect you deserve even if Sasuke-kun objects to it'_, thought Sakura.

"C'mon, over here. I found a cave for us to rest up a bit, we still have four days left", said Naruto while pointing to the large hole in a tree trunk. Sakura followed while she felt more sad as she noticed the lack of '–chan' to her name. He laid Sasuke down while Sakura entered the lightly lit cave seeing that the Sun was now setting down.

"Those clothes look good on you Naruto", said Sakura with a sincere smile. Naruto was surprised when he heard the compliment. Sakura had NEVER said anything nice to him, what was up with her all of a sudden.

"I know that I treated you very badly ever since I met you. But I'm now determined to change and earn your trust & friendship", said a determined Sakura. Naruto was taken aback by the fact that Sakura wanted to be friends with him, something he wanted in the academy while his lips slowly turned into a small smile.

_'I guess everyone deserves a second chance, but I have to keep an eye on her if she's planning something'_, thought Naruto with an almost unnoticeable smile.

" I'll think about it, but you should check on Sasuke's condition, he's pretty beaten up", said Naruto as he pointed to Sasuke beside him with his thumb.

"Oh right! I almost forgot about Sasuke-kun", said Sakura while she hurriedly went over to Sasuke before she started applying bandages to his wounds from a first aid medic kit she seemed to carry.

"Naruto, he's running a high fever. What do we do? We need cold water but I don't think there's a source of water nearby", said Sakura worriedly.

"Leave that upto me", said a smirking Naruto as he combined his wind & water chakra to form a big block of ice in his hands. he then used his wind natured chakra to cut the block into small cubes, still in his hands.

"Will these do?", asked Naruto as he gave her the cubes. Meanwhile Sakura's expression was priceless. She couldn't believe what she saw. First, Naruto created ice just like that Mist-nin Haku and sliced them from out of nowhere. She could only nod dumbly & accept the cubes as she put them on Sasuke's forehead.

"N-Naruto, h-how did you do that?", asked Sakura after tending to Sasuke's injuries.

Naruto sighed as he knew how many questions would be coming, not just from Sakura & Sasuke, but from almost everyone who knew him.

"Look Sakura, I can't tell you anything right now as it is an S-ranked secret but, from now on you'll see me do things that'll make you go haywire. so whatever it is, just take it in without any questions and if you gain enough of my trust, I may tell you everything after the Chunin exams are over", said Naruto seriously while he took out his own sleeping bag and sealed his cape to get comfortable, which resulted in Sakura being gobsmacked as she didn't know that Naruto knew how to use sealing scrolls.

"Okay Naruto, if you say so. But really, that was awesome and I know that you'll definitely become Chunin this time dattebayo", said Sakura while giggling at the last word & took out her own sleeping bag as she dragged Sasuke onto it.

"Yeah, I hope so", mumbled a faintly smiling Naruto as he closed his eyes to get some sleep.

_' I guess the battle between me & Orochimaru opened her eyes to the reality, maybe she still has a chance'_, thought Naruto.

"Well, I'm going to keep watch as I don't feel like sleeping. I'll wake you up if something happens", said Sakura as she walked towards the exit of their temporary shelter.

"Sure, thanks Sakura", said Naruto before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Hokage's Office- Just after the Ice Queens left<strong>

* * *

><p>Hiruzen Sarutobi sat on his chair smoking when the door to his office opened.<p>

First to enter was a beautiful busty lady with an angelic body most women would kill for. She had long flowing silky red hair, hazel green eyes with attractive black eye lashes , milk creamy skin, D-cup breasts, slim waist & toned legs. She was Terumi Mei, Godaime Mizukage of Kirigakure. She had a bit of makeup on her face with red lipstick & bluish eyelids like Kurenai wearing a blue top which was reaching to just above her knee. Under this outfit, she wore a mesh armour. She had the Kiri's blue Kage hat with a kanji for water on it & wore a cheerful expression on her face.

"Greetings Hokage-dono", said Mei with a smile. Along with her were her two bodyguards, namely Ao & Choujiro.

"Ah! Welcome Mizukage-dono. I hope your journey was safe", said a smiling Sarutobi.

"Of course Hokage-dono", replied the Mizukage cheerfully before signalling Ao & Choujiro to come forward, " These are my bodyguards, Ao & Choujiro".

"We are honoured to be in your presence Hokage-sama", said Ao while bowing whereas Choujiro also bowed, somewhat timidly without saying anything. This was the famed Hiruzen Sarutobi after all, 'The Professor' and the man who survived two great shinobi wars. He was a shinobi of virtue & wisdom, trained by the best and trained the best, so naturally they were somewhat nervous.

"At ease you two, no need to be so formal", said the smiling Hokage while radiating a warm aura.

"Understood Hokage-sama", said Ao as he bowed again. Mei & Hiruzen sweatdropped.

_'He understood nothing'_, both thought simultaneously.

The door opened again and the next one to walk in was a tall & a dark muscular figure. He wore a loose Kage robe revealing his front muscular chest and abs. He wore black shinobi pants, gum metal boots, heavy metallic bracelets on his forearms & had white hair. He was A, Yondaime Raikage of Kumogakure.

With him entered five more people. Among them was a man with similar physical characteristics as A, only differences being his attire with black shades, a white bandana and a blue tattoo on each cheek. He was Kirabi/Killer Bee, jinchuriki of the Hachibi. Next was a seventeen year old teen with long blonde hair, greenish-yellow slitted eyes with an orange contrast to the pupil. She had red lipstick, her hair in a single ponytail. She wore a jounin attire and had a Kumo hitai-ate on her forehead. She was Yugito Nii, jinchuriki of the Nibi and was an epitome of beauty having an hour glass figure, C-cup breasts and flawless tanned skin.

Next was her adoptive sister, Samui Nii, having short blonde hair, light blue eyes and was rather well endowed for her age, especially her chest region. She had D-cup breasts often leading to cramps & aches in her shoulders, was fourteen years old and wore a chunin attire. Next to her were her two dark skinned fourteen years old teammates- Karui & Omoi, who wore identical chunin attires. Karui had an 'Will take no bullshit' look on her face while Omoi was sucking on a lollipop having an anxious look on his face.

"Hokage-dono, Mizukage-dono ", bowed A in respect along with his companions.

Hiruzen too stood up from his chair and bowed, "I'm glad that you could take time from your busy schedule to attend this emergency meeting", said the Hokage with a smile.

"I hope your jouney was safe Raikage-dono", said Mei with her usual cheerfulness.

"Ofcourse! Who do you think I am? I am best taijutsu user in the lightning country after all", said A with a grunt,

Yugito sweatdropped, _'Has he ever heard of the word 'modest''._

_'Jeez! Thanks for stating the obvious. With all those overgrown muscles, who wouldn't think of him as a taijutsu specialist'_, thought Mei sarcastically while still smiling on the outside.

"True! True Raikage-dono, but let's get to the business", said Hiruzen as he suddenly became serious.

"I presume those two are among the five of your bodyguards behind you", continued Hiruzen as the Raikage nodded seriously.

"Alright, please take a seat all of you & don't worry, the privacy seals are already activated along with the visibility barrier that even the Byakugan or Sharingan can't penetrate through".

All of them sat around the table while Ao quietly checked the seals with his Byakugan but Hiruzen noticed it. Meanwhile, the Raikage introduced his brother.

"This here is my little brother Kirabi", said A while pointing towards Killer Bee.

"Yo-Yo, the name's Killerbee. And I can see, that although you're an old bunch, you still pack quite a punch", said Kirabi as Yugito slapped him on the backhead.

"You idiot! This is an important meeting and we don't have time for your horrible rapping", hissed Yugito angrily while Mei, Choujiro & Ao were surprised at the blunt greeting.

"Forgive my idiot brother Hokage-dono", apologised A while glaring at Kirabi

"I can see that he's the lively one in your group", said a chuckling Hiruzen.

"But also, he's the jinchuriki of the Hachibi and and can control it upto five tails", said A seriously while the Kiri group's eyes widened. To control five tails of a bijuu was no easy task, even their Yondaime Mizukage- Yagura of the Sanbi had sometimes trouble in controlling the third tail while Hiruzen remained calm.

"This is Yugito Nii, jinchuriki of the Nibi & can currently control only one tail. These three are Kirabi's students- Karui, Omoi & Samui", said A while Hiruzen & Mei sweatdropped.

_'Even his student's names have a rhyme to them. I wonder if he gave it to them'_, thought Mei & Sarutobi simultaneously.

"Hm, I'm sure they will be glad to see their two fellow jinchuriki here", said Sarutobi.

"Ah! The Kyuubi jinchuriki. But who's the other one?", asked Mei.

"The other one is the Suna's jinchuriki- Sabaku No Gaara, hosting the Ichibi and son of the Yondaime Kazekage", said the Hokage seriously.

"Alright, I think it's time we the main issue here, i.e. the Akatsuki", said A while Sarutobi nodded.

"Hai, but there is one thing I must inform you about is that I have two spies in that organisation, so it will be somewhat easy to keep track of their movements"

"Two? You only told me about Uchiha Itachi, but whose the other one?", asked a confused A.

"By the approval of Mizukage-dono here, Houshigaki Kisame is my other spy as he's not liked much in Kiri", said Sarutobi.

A whistled, "That's a huge bonus. I've heard about the chakra reserves of that guy being equal to a jinchuriki".

"But there's another main reason for this meeting. Raikage-dono, I hope you remember that you owe me for the Hyuuga incident because of your previous Raikage", said Hiruzen with his piercing gaze fixated on A who nodded.

"And Mizukage-dono, I'm sure that after the Bloodline War jus being finished, that Kiri is in it's weakened state right now and you would be looking for some alliances", continued Sarutobi.

Mei nodded,"But what are you-", but she was interrupted by a loud cry and the sound of glass being broken.

"DYNAMIC ENTRY!"

Sarutobi face palmed himself while crying anime tears muttering things like- 'Why now?' & 'What have I done to deserve this'.

Everybody, except the Hokage, turned their heads to see the most horrible sight in their ninja careers that would haunt them in their most vicious nightmares for the rest of their lives. There standing in front of them was the wierdest human they had ever seen, a male with a tight green splandex, bowl shaped hair, had the biggest & thickest eyebrows in the history of homosapiens. What added more to his nightmarish appearance was that he was standing in a thumbs-up pose and his teeth were shining so much that even Amateresu & Tsukiyomi would feel jealous. so much shine was there that all of them had to cover their eyes, even Killerbee, who had his shades, couldn't pierce through this strange Flash Illumination Effect.

_'Damn! I forgot the physical barrier. I hope they can sleep properly from now on'_, thought a pale faced Sarutobi.

"YOSH! HOKAGE-SAMA! MY YOUTHFUL EARS HAVE PICKED UP SOME YOUTHFUL INFORMATION THAT RAIKAGE-SAMA & MIZUKAGE-SAMA HAVE ARRIVED!", shouted this epitome of wierdness.

_'Shit! Shit! Shit! DAMN SHIT! I should have warned those four about keeping this to themselves'_, mentally cursed the Hokage who was currently sweating bullets on how to handle this situation.

"Heeey! That was a cool entry fuzzy eyebrow, although ya look like shitty scarecrow", tried to rap the jinchuriki followed by a typical punch to his head by the fellow jinchuriki resulting in him falling face first on the ground.

However, this time Yugito couldn't say anything as she was stunned into silence. Even Nibi was panicked.

_'Kitten! Stay away from this thing! AHH! WE'RE GONNA DIE'_, screamed Nibi in Yugito's head while she could only nod with her.

"Back in my days... never mind, I've never seen such a thing", murmured Ao.

"That... is not cool", said a surprised Samui while Mei, A & Choujiro were rendered speechless.

" Yugito-san, you shouldn't hit Bee-sensei like that. If you punch him that hard, what if he gets angry resulting in him releasing the Hachibi. Then it will go on a rampage slaughtering us all and destroying Konoha in the process, which would further result into a fourth great shinobi war and ultimately, leading to the extinction of the human race!", said Omoi while he anxiously sucked on his lollipop.

A vein popped on Karui's forehead followed by a punch to his head resulting in him throwing his lollipop in the direction of Gai.

_'Uh-Oh!'_, thought Karui.

"Hm, what is this unyouthful thing?", said Gai after catching Omoi's sucktoy and was currently inspecting it.

All eyes were on Gai wanting to see his reaction, but what he did next threw them for the loop. He put the lollipop in his damn mouth and started sucking on it.

"WOSH! TWISH THWING TSASTES SHOUTHFUL", said Gai who sucking on the lollipop and was grinning like an idiot.

_'Please tell me this is not happening'_, thought Mei with a look of dread on her face.

"NOOOO! HOW DARE YOU EAT MY LOLLI-CHAN!", yelled Omoi with a look of horror on his face while pointing an accusing finger at Gai.

"YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE DAMPENED MY BOY! YOU SHOULD SHARE SUCH YOUTHFUL THINGS WITH YOUTHFUL PEOPLE"

"LIKE HELL I WOULD SHARE SOMETHING WITH A FREAK LIKE YOU! AND WHAT'S THIS YOUTHFUL CRAP YOU'RE BLABBERING ABOUT", screamed Omoi whereas Karui was surprised as she had never seen him so worked up.

_'No wonder Konoha is the strongest village. With people like him here, wars can be won with just his appearance'_, thought A as Omoi & Gai continued to argue.

"Hokage-dono, I would advice that you send this man out and continue with this meeting", said a smiling Mei while her eyebrows twitched constantly. She was really resisting the urge to melt this man's unyouthful balls. Hiruzen nodded and ordered Gai to leave the office.

"AS YOU WISH HOKAGE-SAMA! REVERSE DYNAMIC ENTRY!", yelled Gai before leaving the office and breaking another window in the process, the cursed lollipop still in his mouth while a tic-mark appeared on Sarutobi's forehead.

_' He just had to break another window'_, thought the Hokage while Omoi was sulking at the corner muttering words like- ' lolli-chan getting raped' and all.

"Let's not waste any more time Hokage-dono", said A after regaining his composure.

"Hai, but what were you implying before the disturbance Hokage-dono", asked Mei while everyone else paid attention at that.

"Right, ahm", said Sarutobi while clearing his throat. "I, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure No Sato propose an all-out triangular alliance with Kiri & Kumo consisting of Military, Trade & Political alliances", said Sarutobi with a smirk while his kage hat shadowed his face creating a rather dramatic effect.

Everyone else's jaws dropped on the ground and their eyes as wide as saucers.

"W-What?", stuttered Mei. If what she heard was true, then this was a huge moment for Kiri. Never had she thought that Konoha, the strongest village in the world would propose an alliance with any village, much less Kiri which was now the weakest. She herself was going to talk about a possible alliance in this meeting in hopes that the Hokage might agree. If she accepted this alliance, not only will they be allianced to Konoha but also Kumo! It would be like hitting two birds with one stone. And what more, it was a complete traditional alliance consisting of Military, Trade & Political alliances meaning that the villages would get full access to each other village's military, resource cooperation & they could share their political affairs with each other.

Meanwhile, the Raikage was also thinking along the same lines, but he was a bit skeptical.

"But what's the catch Hokage-dono? Surely a village as strong as Konoha would like to remain neutral & not risk war with our enemies, you wouldn't want an alliance for nothing, would you?", said the suspicious Raikage.

"There's no catch about it Raikage-dono. I simply want this alliance to confront Akatsuki- our common enemy, protect our jinchuriki and prevent a possible fourth great shinobi war", said Hiruzen seriously.

"I, Mizukage-sama & you have all experienced wars. We know that it is an endless cycle of hatred, fear & pain. I just don't want this generation to go through it", continued Sarutobi while glancing in the direction of Karui, Omoi & Samui as A & Mei too nodded with sadness.

"So, what do you sa Raikage-dono, Mizukage-dono?", asked Hiruzen.

"Sure Hokage-dono! Kiri would be happy to go along with this multi-village alliance with Konoha", said a cheerful Mei.

"Well, Kumo does follow militaristic approach and I also owe one, so I guess we'll go with it. We'll persue our dreams with you", said A with a smirk.

Hiruzen nodded, satisfied with their decision as Konoha & Naruto would have a much better chance against the Akatsuki.

"While I'm sure that Iwa would straight out decline the proposal, but what about Suna?", asked Mei.

"I did send the Kazekage an invitation for this meeting, but so far they haven't even answered and I'm a bit suspicious of him. Lately, the wind daimyo has been cutting Suna's missions short and turning them over to us, thus they are financially lacking & I think they are about to take some action soon", said the Hokage seriously while Mei & A nodded with a grim look on their faces.

"Oh ho! Now that we have Kiri-Kono-Kumo alliance, the Akatsuki are going to face on hell of a defiance! Whee!", you know who opened his rapbox.

"For once, I agree with sensei. This alliance is cool", said Samui with a smirk while everyone nodded with her with a smile.

"So where's the Kyuubi jinchuriki? He must be around twelve years old", asked a curious Raikage.

"Ah! Although the villagers hate him with passion, he is the ray of joyness & purity for this village and is also like a grandson for me. His name is Naruto and is currently taking part in the Chunin exams".

"Is he strong Hokage-sama? So far the only thing we've heard about him from the villagers is tha he is a shrimp, loud & annoying, a prank master and a dead last who flunked his graduation exams twice", said Yugito.

"Donot believe those foolish villagers. It was just a part of his mask & he thinks that I don't know about it. You're a jinchuriki, you should know that the leakage of a bijuu's chakra in your chakra coils messes up your chakra control, hence it's difficult to create a bunshin which requires a small amount of chakra, thus the reason for failing twice in the academy", said Sarutobi seriously.

"But I & Kirabi-sensei passed the examinations in the first year", argued Yugito.

" That was because Naruto had it worst than a normal jinchuriki like you should", said Hiruzen.

"What do you mean Hokage-dono? How was the boy's life until now?", asked a confused A while the others listened intently.

"The Nibi, Hachibi or any other bijuu except the Kyuubi have not caused the magnitude of destruction to a jinchuriki's village as compared to the destruction the Kyuubi caused 12 years ago. More than half of our village was destroyed, three-fourth of our shinobi having families were killed, which gave birth to an infinite amount of fear, pain, anger & hatred to the villagers and the shinobi here. They had to vent their anger on someone, which resulted in Naruto being the scapegoat of their hatred. I'm not justifying their actions, just telling you. For jinchuriki like you, although people in your village still hate you, they only prefer to keep their distance from you & ignore you. But in Naruto's case, I'm not going to go into the details but he was treated much harshly than you guys. He was not taught properly by any of the teachers except one & that too on his passing year", explained the professor with a sad expression on his face while others too were saddened by this. Meanwhile Yugito & Kirabi were shocked that someone had taken it harder then them and still survived through it.

" You want to know how strong is he is, right? How about we go see ourselves the preliminaries", said a smirking Hiruzen.

"Sure Hokage-dono, we would like to see this enigma and his skills, as he does contains the strongest of the bijuu", replied Mei happily.

"I guess so, I've been itching to watch some fights anyway", said A while all of them stood up.

"The preliminaries would be held in four days. Until then you're free to do anything as you wish with my Anbu trailing you for security purposes, so please cooperate with them. I've already arranged for your stay, so please follow your escort standing outside the door to your hotel", said Hiruzen with a smile as A & Mei nodded while wondering how strong the Ichibi & the Kyuubi jinchuriki were.

* * *

><p><strong>There you go, so how was the fourth chapter? I know plot-wise it did not progressed much, but there were some things that needed to be done. I know some of you may bash me as I chose not to bash Sakura in this fic, rather change her, but I did sent her on a guilty trip. And please review this chapter, they were the inspiration which allowed me finish this chapter before my exam. Well the next chapter also may take some time.<strong>

**Well, I wanted your opinion on a taijutsu style. I had this crazy idea when I was trying to sleep, well my friends did said it was pretty lame. This style is a reflex-type taijutsu style whose main strength is the unpredictability factor, ofcourse it needs strength & speed. It includes a different sets of moves which first Naruto memorises to a degree where he can perform it without being conscious of it, almost as if his body reacts on reflex (just like in drunken fist). Now comes the unpredictable part, where during fighting he constantly sends chakra pulses to medulla oblongata(mainly responsible for spinal cord & body reflexes), resulting in his body constantly adapting to different reflex mechanisms, hence his moves are being chosen randomly, so if he himself doesn't know what would his next move be, how can the almightly Sharingan predict it. Not every shinobi can do it, but he could do it maybe because of the Rinnegan, an ability which he might have discovered during his two months training. I know its pretty scientific & not much practical, but I mainly devised this idea to possibly counteract Sharingan's ability to predict moves. Tsunade also told Sakura that every shinobi has a pattern to his attacks, what if I removed that factor, then Naruto would have an edge in the fight against Madara & Sasuke (emo-bastards can't even do shit without their doujutsu, every technique they use is somehow related to their bloodline, heh don't worry, their time will come too). Well, I named this style the Monsoon Fist, mainly because monsoon too is unpredictable just like this style. I know we read these fics for relaxation & not for a science hypothesis, but still it would be cool to see the look on Sasuke-teme's face.**

**So yeah, please tell me about it honestly as I may include this style in my fic depending on your answer and please review. Ja Ne!**


	5. Meeting My Tenant

**Hey guys! Thanks a lot for the reviews. So here's the fifth chapter you've all been waiting for. However this chapter was supposed to be published after 4-5 days from now, but I tried to publish this as fast as possible.**

**About the harem, many people having been asking about the matriarch of Naruto's harem. No Hinata will not be the head of harem, KUSHINA will be. I absolutely love Naru/Kushi pairing followed by Naru/Mikoto. And no, Sakura will NOT be in the harem as stated in the first chapter, I'm just gonna put her on the track alongwith Ino. And no, I wouldn't change Sasuke (I agree, it would be like WTF move). **

**About the monsoon fist, I'm still not sure, so I'll see what I can do. In this chapter, there should be very few errors, if not at all. So, enjoy! Here we begin- **

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile:Forest of Death- The Clearing<strong>

* * *

><p>Kurenai, after checking on her team, obviously not letting them aware of her presence, had reached the clearing sometime ago. She could sense Naruto's distinct type of chakra as well as two other chakras coming from a trunk cave in the area.<p>

So far, she couldn't see or feel any thing out of the ordinary coming from team 7, so she applied a high level genjutsu on herself and kept herself hidden for the time being while keeping a watch for anything out of the ordinary. After sometime, she saw Haruno Sakura come out who then started laying traps around their temporary residence. The traps were nothing special, but good enough for a bunch of weak genins. While Sakura was busy, Naruto had already drifted to sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>Naruto's Mindscape<strong>

* * *

><p><em>'drip' 'drip'<em>

_Where am I?'_, thought Naruto as he found himself in some corridors where water was filled to his knees. One moment he was sleeping and another, he was in this damn sewer!

The area was dimly lit and he had no idea how. He then started walking wherever the path was taking him. After sometime, he heard a faint sound of crying coming from ahead of him. He then started running in the direction from where the sound was coming from, but it strangely sounded feminine. He came to a halt in front of a large cage wth a small piece of paper on the middle with a kanji for seal on it.

He could clearly hear the sounds of someone crying from the other side of the cage and was really nervous now. First he found himself in this sewer and then this, it could also be a trap or something. He then noticed that he didn't had any kunai or shuriken holsters wrapped to his thighs but was shocked when suddenly a kunai materialized in midair in front of him.

'_What the hell! I was thinking of drawing out a kunai and it materialised'_, thought Naruto but was dragged out of his musings when the sounds of crying got louder.

He cautiously approached the cage with a kunai in front of him but could see nothing in the cage as it was dark while he activated his Rinnegan. He gasped when he saw a bright source of overflowing red chakra. He put the two & two together as he thought about the cage, the seal kanji, the RED chakra and came to an obvious conclusion.

'_The K-Kyuubi! It's crying? What the hell! Am I dreaming and why didn't anyone tell me that it was a female'_, thought Naruto before he stopped just outside the cage.

"Um, h-hello? Anybody there?", said a nervous Naruto. He was talking to Kyuubi no Kitsune after all, so had to be careful. The crying suddenly stopped and he could hear and as well as see that 'she' was shuffling inside while wiping her tears.

"W-Who it it? N-Naruto-kun, is that you?", said a shaky feminine voice which was even more scared than Naruto's.

'_The hell is going on here, why is she scared of all people…..or demons'_, thought Naruto as he slowly progressed towards the inside of the cage. Although he knew that he could be dead within seconds, but something in him told that he should comfort her. She didn't look all that scary, and he thought that Kyuubi was a giant fox and not a feminine human or whatever.

"Yeah, um my name is Uzumaki Naruto, your vessel. Pleased to meet ya", said Naruto while he laughed nervously. He was now completely inside the cage, but the next thing he knew, he was tackled by a red blur resulting in him falling on the wet floor. She was so fast even his Rinnegan couldn't follow it. He thought that he would be dead anytime now as he mistaked it for an attack, but when he opened his eyes, all he could see were two small cute fox ears while Kyuubi's face was buried in his jounin vest. She was sobbing uncontrollably, repeatedly saying 'sorry', he also noted the nine tails swishing in midair and her long silky red hair which reached to her lower back.

He couldn't bear to see any female cry even if it was the Kyuubi. If she was as bad as the legends told, then she already would have killed him.

"Why are you saying sorry?", asked a confused Naruto while he absent mindedly started stroking her ears. Kyuubi immediately blushed while she started to purr and leaned more into his touch. She was brought out of her comfort when Naruto voiced the same question again. She lifted her face to find that she was only inches away from his face. Both of them blushed crimson red as they saw each other's facial characteristics.

To Naruto, he had never seen someone so beautiful. Her heart shaped face, red eyes with black slits, small nose and pink supple lips, all seem to yell 'angelic'. Her complexion was glowing white and he couldn't help but wonder, how the hell did she maintain herself in this sewer?

To Kyuubi, he was very adorable, cute and handsome at the same time. His spiky blonde hair, tan skin and whiskers added to his appearance. But what really threw her for the loop was when she noticed her eyes. Naruto was brought out of his trance-like state when he heard her gasp.

"The R-Rinnegan, I can't believe it. It truly has finally awakened after so many years", whispered Kyuubi with a look of astonishment on her face. Her eyes were watery red and her cheeks were puffy due to crying so much. Naruto could only stare at her beautiful face. He didn't know why or how, but he kinda felt attracted to her, like there was a bond between him & her. He felt a pang in his heart, to see the almighty Kyuubi No Kitsune cry, how ironic.

So instinctively, he brought his hand to her face and wiped her tears. At first, she blushed furiously, but then leaned into his touch.

"Why are you crying?", asked Naruto softly. At this, more tears started forming in her eyes but she controlled herself.

"Just now, I….I saw all of your memories. I saw how you were treated all your life just…..just , because of me. I….I'm so sorry", at this she again broke down as she sobbed uncontrollably while hugging Naruto tightly to her. He blushed when he felt her breasts tightly pressed against his chest but he had more important things to do. He hugged her back while rubbing her red hair lovingly whereas she continued to cry. After sometime, she stopped crying and began to enjoy the warmth that Naruto seemed to be radiating.

"Kyu-chan?", asked Naruto while still rubbing her hair. She blushed at the addition of '–chan' to her name while 'hm-ing' in response to indicate she was listening.

"What did you mean by 'just now'? Why didn't you appear early in my life and I thought that you were a giant fox, not a beautiful lady", said Naruto still clueless that he was flirting with her while her blush got darker in shade, but he couldn't see it as her face was buried in his chest.

"First, I would like you to know why I attacked your village", said Kyuubi as she lifted her face and stared Naruto right in his purple eyes.

"What do you mean? Didn't you just go on a rampage?", asked a confused Naruto while Kyuubi shook her head.

"Your mother Naruto-kun, was my previous host", said Kyuubi shocking Naruto to his very core but before he could speak, she continued.

"When she gave birth to you, someone attacked her. After a jinchuriki gives birth, her seal gets weakened considerably. So that day, a man with a black cloak wearing an orange spiral mask on his face attacked her just after giving birth to you. I still don't clearly remember the incident, but I do know that he somehow released me. He had the Sharingan, although I couldn't clearly see what form it was, but it was definitely Mangekyou or above. When I saw him in the eyes, something snapped in me. After that, the only thing I remember is me attacking your village and the rest is somewhat blank, only blurred visions of that incident, just like amnesia.

What I know is that he trapped me in VERY powerful genjutsu which was active till today. After the sealing, I got some of my consciousness back and tried to dispel the genjutsu, but couldn't do it until you awakened your Rinnegan. That's why you could easily control one tail of my chakra, because some part of me was constantly trying to help you since the sealing. Remember your battle at the bridge in the wave country, when you first time accessed my chakra because of your emotions, well my guess is that that somewhat weakened your seal. So after that, when you tried to willingly harness my chakra, even with your sensei's help, didn't you find it surprisingly easy? It was because I was giving you my one tail worth of chakra whenever you needed it", explained Kyuubi while Naruto was shell shocked. He didn't know that she was trying to help him all along. He always chased academy teachers or other shinobi for any kind of help, but she was all along helping him. Whenever he was injured, she made extra effort besides the seal to heal him as quickly as possible as the seal didn't leak much of her youki to heal critical wounds. Tears slowly started forming in his eyes as he tightly hugged her to his body again.

"Kyu-chan…I…thank you very much! You don't know how much it means to me", said Naruto happily.

"With what you have endured Naruto-kun, I would do anything for you to redeem myself", said Kyuubi while blushing as she could feel his tight muscles under his black jounin-like vest. Meanwhile, Naruto started to rub her back soothingly, but he noticed something odd. Instead of cloth fabric, he could feel soft flesh, then he realized.

_'Oh Kami! She's naked! Now she's going to kill me thinking that I'm a pervert'_, thought a scared Naruto but was surprised to hear a moan escape her lips while he still unconsciously continued to rub her back.

"Naruto-kun...", moaned Kyuubi as she drew closer to Naruto's face while he himself started to close the gap. But what about Hinata, he knew that he shouldn't be doing this but he also couldn't resist her pretty face and her angelic voice.

Finally their lips touched in a chaste kiss while there was a rush of wamth throughout their bodies. Her lips were so soft, he could practically feel his lips melting in the tender embrace of her warm lips. It was just like how two hot molten metals fuse with each other to form a whole new element. Never had he thought that a simple kiss could feel so good, well if you had your first kiss with a boy who radiated the superiority of the combination of his whole dead clan & the broodiness of a guy who lost his dick at the hands of his brother's wakizashi, who wouldn't? 'Foolish little brother, your dick will always be weak, it's best if you get rid of it'. 'My goal is to cut the dick of a certain someone', yeah that kind of brooder.

Well, back to the kiss. Soon they deepened their kiss while Naruto started to rub her lower bare back and Kyuubi started to rub his scalp lovingly, they were on the ninth cloud right now. But he was surprised when her tongue touched his lower lip, he didn't know what to do but followed his instincts by opening his mouth.

A whole new fulfilling sensation of electric pleasure bolted throughout his body & invaded his nervous system when he felt her tongue massaging his own. Soon her tongue began exploring his mouth like a lone child in a candy store. Her tongue embracing his, as if asking him to come to it's home. Upon his barely controlled instincts, his tongue tenderly entered her mouth before he fervently explored her angelic insides. Her mouth tasted like wild strawberries with a tinge of ripened peaches. She moaned in his mouth while slurping sounds were made as they deliriously kissed each other, saliva dripping from both of their tongues. If Jiraiya would've seen this, he surely would've died of bloodloss with a content smile on his face.

But upon feeling something hard poke her in her lower region, she moaned loudly leading to an abrupt stop to their make-out session, both panting heavily with blood red blush on their faces.

_'What's wrong with me!'_, thought Naruto while both of them were breathing heavily. On the other hand, Kyuubi too felt confused but somewhat excited at the strange attraction she felt for him. Although they had only met now, but she could say that she knew him better than anyone in the village, she had watched his memories after all. She knew all of his traits, quirks, his funny persona, his unshatterable confidence, determination & the unbrokable will to never give up, his obsession with Ramen, his fondess for his Ayame-nee-chan, Hinata-chan, Benihime-chan, Tsume-chan (not the Inuzuka clan head), Yugi-chan & a girl whose name he never came to know about. But a small part of her knew that she had already fallen for him the moment she watched his life & how he tackled it head on.

"S-Sorry", stuttered Naruto while she watched the other way with a blush, not matching his gaze.

"M-Me too", she said meekly.

"Kyu-chan, do you like me? Like...in that way?", asked Naruto while she sighed sadly as she rested her head on his chest.

"I...I don't know. I'm so confused, I feel very much attracted to you, but...I'm not sure if you'll accept me. I know you like that Hinata girl, but...", she inhaled deeply while trying to stop her tears. "...but..., atleast give me a chance Naruto-kun. I know that I was the sole reason you lost everything and had to endure something which no one else should. But I'm ready to do anything for you, anything to redeem myself, anything you ask for. I know that a demon like me doesnot deserve the love of someone like you, but please...I can't...I just can't live without you", she said in a choked voice while she was barely restraining her tears.

But when she felt warm droplets on her head, she looked up to see Naruto smiling warmly at her while tears were freely flowing down his face and that his eyes were back to normal blue color.

Naruto had never felt so warm & wanted in a long time. He had another person who liked him or rather was attracted to him in a romantic way. While he had grandfatherly, sisterly & brotherly characters in his life, he deeply yearned for physical contact or a romantic relationship. And now he was possibly getting what he wanted all his life: love. Such a simple four letter word, but so strong that even the demons bow before it. It can fill a person's life with happiness, compassion & joyness beyond imagination. It is what gives the defination of heart and makes the person forget all his memories in his lover's embrace.

Keeping his thoughts of love for another day, he took hold of her chin before he kissed her lightly on her cute nose leading to a pink tint on her cheeks.

"Silly Kyu-chan, it doesnot matter to me if you're a demon or not. To me, you're my cute kitsune, the one who stayed with me from the day I was born, the one who constantly helped me in my hardships, the one who I would die to protect. Although I too feel attracted towards you, but I would like to know you, to be your friend, and if possible maybe more. But one thing I promise you on my dream of becoming Hokage, that I would never let the Akatsuki capture you...EVER! That's the promise of a lifetime", said Naruto with determination while cupping her cheek whereas Kyuubi was extremely happy that he considered her his precious person.

_'I will never leave your side Naruto-kun. In just a few moments, you have shown me how caring, forgiving, kind & a loving person you are'_, she thought while rubbing his whisker marks, but giggled when she heard him purr.

"I didn't know your whiskers were sensitive Naruto-kun", said a giggling Kyuubi while Naruto blushed in embarrassement.

"Um..., can I stand now?", asked Naruto with a sheepish grin. She melted right away at seeing his infectious grin, she was a kitsune after all, why wouldn't she like the smiles of her own kind.

"S-Sure", she stuttered before standing up. However, there was one thing that Naruto didn't account for & that was seeing the Kyuubi in all her naked glory.

His face became steamy red before he was propelled back by a large nosebleed. She had the body of a goddess, all the body curves were in the right places leading to a hour-glass figure and her perky C-cup, soft but firm breasts accentuated her beauty.

"Naruto-kun!", yelled Kyuubi as she came running towards him. Now he had an even larger nosebleed when he saw her bouncing mounds while she ran towards him.

_'Uzumaki Naruto: can't have a normal day in life'_, he thought while pinching his nose to prevent anymore loss of blood. Upon reaching him, she tenderly put his head in her lap with a worried expression on her face.

"Naruto-kun, what happened? Are you alright?"

"Naked...Kyuubi...clothes", muttered a dazed Naruto. She blushed heavily when she realised her indecent condition, but inwardly was satisfied with his reaction.

"But this is your mindscape, so you should be able to materialise whatever you want", she said while he stood up.

"Hmm, I don't know much about clothes. I guess a jounin attire would do for now", pondered Naruto as a jounin wear appeared out of nowhere on her body.

"Kyu-chan, do you have a name?", asked Naruto while Kyuubi nodded as she didn't like the name 'nine tailed' much before speaking.

"Hai, it's Ayumi. That's what your mother used to call me by".

"It's a nice name, but can you tell me about my mother?", asked Naruto with a sparkle of hope in his eyes. Ayumi's eyes softened at his question, she could only imagine the frustration & pain of not knowing anything about the one who gave birth to you. Inside this matured Naruto, she could see a boy desperate to know about his parents, a boy who never knew what a mother's love was, a boy who cries everyday wanting to see his mother atleast once, to be in her embrace, to tell her about his accomplishments, to rest his head on her lap while he cries & tells her about his failures, for her to teach him petty things, to scold & correct him when he does something wrong. Behind this man, was a shadowed child desperate for attention and maternal love, or maybe more from her.

"Hai Naruto-kun. Your mother was from the whirpool country: Uzumaki Kushina, who came to Konoha when she was young. You can say that she was as beautiful as me, if not more. She was the defination of angel for men & jealousy for women. But what really made her infamous across the elemental nations was her godly master of water element equalling your Nidaime's prowess in the element and her status of being a seal master that even Jiraiya- The Toad Sannin could not hope to surpass. The complex seal-**Shiki Fujin **(Reaper Death Seal), on your stomach which binds me to you, was her art. She was easily a kage level shinobi who was given S-rank in the Bingo books of all the elemental nations. She too, like you had extremely large chakra reserves, fast healing rate and had a natural talent for taijutsu & ninjutsu. The Uzumaki clan were a natural with seals, had faster healing rate & longer life spans than normal, so they looked like 18-20 years old even if they reached their fifties, but their history is for another day.

Your mother had a tomboyish attitude when she was young but became more womanly with time. That's the main reason your mask was even able to confuse the people who knew her closely. You see, when you acted loud, spontaneous & obnoxious, ironically it matched with her personality. However, you did acquire some of her traits like determination, courage, protecting your precious people with your life and the stubborness to never give up", explained Ayumi with a faraway look on her face while Naruto was brimming with pride & happiness that his mother was such a legendary shinobi.

"Did you ever talk to her?", asked a smiling Naruto.

"Hai, she would often tell me about her experiences and how she loved you with every fibre of her being when she was pregnant", she said with a serene expression.

"But what about my fa-", he stopped speaking whensuddenly the sewer around him started fading.

"We'll talk later Naruto-kun. For now, it seems that you're waking up. Something out there is going on", she said while giving him a small smile & a wink.

"I'll come later Ayumi-chan", he said while smiling before completely disappearing from his mindscape.

* * *

><p><strong>Forest of Death- The Clearing<strong>

* * *

><p>For Kurenai, something fishy was going on here. Sometime after Haruno Sakura had laid the traps, the sound team appeared, demanding for the Uchiha to come out. Here the Haruno girl did the smart thing by surrendering her Heaven scroll as the Oto team possessed the Earth scroll. But it seemed that they were not interested in the scroll, rather fighting the Uchiha. But why wouldn't they concentrate on the task that they were assigned like every other team? Were they given orders by someone to attack team 7, and especially the Uchiha?<p>

She couldn't help but feel that something really big was going on here. First Orochimaru attacks team 7, and then the sound team. When they found Orochimaru, he was in the process of attacking Naruto, but because of the intervention of Itachi & his partner, he fled the scene. Had he already achieved what he came for? But then she realised that she saw something black on Sasuke's neck, something which she had dismissed as a possible injury and didn't paid any attention as she was worried for Naruto at that time.

But now when she put the pieces together- _'The Curse Mark!'_. Ofcourse, the Sharingan! Anko did told her that the bastard wanted Sharingan from the beginning. But why is this sound team concentrated on Uchiha & not the exams? Could it be that Orochimaru was somehow connected to Otogakure, they were recently formed after all. She would have to inform Hokage-sama about this. While thinking, she completely lost track of time, so when she looked down from her hiding position, she was surprised to see an injured Sakura with a short haircut, there was the taijutsu genin- Rock Lee from team 9 who was unconscious at the moment and team 10 was standing in front of the otherwise okay sound team in battle ready positions.

"Thanks Ino", said a grateful Sakura who was taking care of Lee at the moment.

"Don't mention it forehead. Besides, the last time I checked, we were friends, although a bickering ones at that", said a chuckling Ino.

"Although this is troublesome, but I guess it won't be too bad to help a fellow team", said Shikamaru lazily as he bent on his knees and formed the handseal for his Shadow Possession Technique whereas Chouji was still chewing his potato chips rapidly.

"Guys, I think we should retreat. The Uchiha is unconscious, there's no way we can fight more than one team", said Kin whose clothes were torn in several places showing a bit of cleavage. She was rather well developed for her age with C-cup breasts, an hour glass figure, creamy tanned skin and had a pretty face. Currently she was sustaining minor cuts & bruises, but nothing critical.

Before Dosu could reply, she was backhanded rather harshly as she fell to the ground while blood oozed out of her mouth.

"Shutup bitch! Because of your weakness, that pink haired slut was able to survive this long", spat Zaku while Dosu remained indifferent with his teammate's behaviour.

"B-But, you too-", she was interrupted by a kick to her ribs, breaking several of them while she cried out in pain.

"You dare say that you bitch! Huh!", he said while he continued to stomp on her. Meanwhile, all of them except Dosu were disgusted by what they were witnessing.

_'How can he treat his teammate like that!'_, thought a shocked Ino with a look of horror on her face. On the other hand, Kurenai was barely restraining herself from killing this genin. Chunin exams or not, she couldn't see any female treated like that.

Just as she was about to do something, a malicious & an evil aura washed over the area. Zaku too immediately stopped his stomping, when he felt this evil chakra. But Dosu was familiar with this chakra, the same chakra he always feel whenever Orochimaru or anyone possessing the curse mark was around. All of them turned their heads to see Sasuke coming out of the cave while black stripe markings covered his face & forearms. The genins were rooted at their spots in fear of this powerful & an evil aura that he was emanating. Sasuke had a psychotic grin on his face while he scanned his surroundings, Sharingan activated with bloodlust cleary evident in his eyes.

_' This strength, what is this amazing power that I'm feeling? This is what I wanted all along. Just you wait Itachi, you will get killed by my hands very soon now'_, thought Sasuke with an arrogant smirk.

"So the great Uchiha decides to grace us with his presence eh? Had a nice nap?", asked Zaku with a cocky smirk on his face.

"Zaku, I think we should really retreat now. We're in no condition to fight", said Dosu who could feel Sasuke's cursed chakra growing stronger & more potent with every second.

"What! You too! Just wait a second while I take care of-", before Zaku could continue further, he was punched in the gut so hard that he instantly lost consciousness while he coughed & his eyes rolled back in his head even before touching the dirt.

Except Kurenai, nobody saw him move, at one instance he was walking slowly & at another, he just vanished to appear in front of Zaku.

" Tsch, pathetic!", remarked Sasuke with a smirk.

_'Troublesome'_, thought the lazy genius.

_'Sasuke-kun, what happened to you?'_, thought Ino & Sakura simultaneously.

_'He's fast! I didn't even see him, we have to get outta here'_, thought Dosu while Sasuke kicked Zaku in his stomach who was currently laying unconscious on the ground whereas Kin was trembling in fear of the bloodlust that Sasuke seemed to be emanating.

But her blood ran cold when Sasuke's blood red eyes turned to her before he started walking towards her, he wanted to test his new found strength.

"Weaklings like you don't deserve to live. You should be honoured to die by the hands of an Uchiha", said a smirking Sasuke as he started going through a couple of handseals. Everyone's eyes widened at hearing him, while it was common to die in these exams, here it was no need to kill her. She was already severly injured and was no threat to them.

"SASUKE-KUN NO!", screamed Sakura but it fell on deaf ears.

_'Somebody, please help me. I don't want to die'_, thought Kin while tears formed in her eyes.

Before Sasuke could finish the handseals for whatever jutsu he was gonna throw at her, he sensed a huge chakra spike behind him while a calm, peaceful & a serene aura washed the area overpowering his dark demeanour & bloodlust.

All of the genins & Kureani felt a strange feeling of calmness flow through them and oddly made all of their worries go away. Kin could almost no longer feel any pain which was currently being overwhelmed by this sense of peacefulness & comfort.

_'This is NOT troublesome'_, thought an unusual Shikamaru while Chouji was still eating his damned chips, albeit a lot slowly than before and his eyes were closed in contempt like a was getting a blowjob while eating- the dream of every Akamichi. Meanwhile Sakura, Dosu, Ino & Kurenai too were feeling the effects whereas Lee was still unconscious.

However Sasuke couldn't feel anything due to the curse mark's effects except the chakra spike. He turned to where he felt the spike, but didn't see anything except the trunk cave.

"Stop this, Sasuke", his eyes widened when he heard an all too familiar voice from where he was facing before (meaning where Kin is). He whipped his head back so fast that you would've thought he broke his neck.

Sasuke's & everyone's eyes widened when they saw Naruto standing there in front of Kin facing Sasuke, his hair & cape flowing with the breeze while his ice cold 'blue' eyes pierced through Sasuke's Sharingan.

_'Naruto? What happened to him? Doesn't matter, he's still a loser. With this power, no one can stop me, not even Itachi'_, thought Sasuke arrogantly after coming over his shock.

"What happened to you Dobe? Did you hit puberty? And what's with the change in clothes?", asked Sasuke while smirking. Meanwhile Kurenai was also smirking, but for a different reason.

_'Looks like the hero always arrives at the last moment. Let's see how much you've improved Naruto-kun'_.

"It doesnot concern you Sasuke".

"Hn, don't think acting all cool & mighty will get you anywhere", said Sasuke arrogantly while Shikamaru sweatdropped.

_'You're the one to talk troublesome guy'._

"I don't care, just leave the girl & her team. They're already injured and would give us their Earth scroll, wouldn't they?", asked Naruto as he turned back to glare coldly at Dosu.

Meanwhile, Dosu flinched at seeing that icy glare. His eyes were hollow, devoid of any emotion & promised a lot of pain if he disagreed. He nearly pissed his pants when Naruto's eyes changed to purple color with one ring circumscribing the pupil just for a moment before reverting back to his normal cerulean blue color. However, nobody noticed this except Dosu & Kurenai.

_'Damn, he looks even more hot when he does that'_, thought Kurenai as she found herself a bit turned on.

"O-Ofcourse", stuttered Dosu before throwing the Earth's scroll in Naruto's direction who caught it before putting it in his shuriken pouch.

Meawhile, team 10 couldn't believe their eyes, especially Ino who was blushing furiously. They were all having trouble indentifying this genin until their eyes landed on his whiskers resulting in their jaws getting dropped.

_'Holy cow! Is that Naruto? What is going on here?'_, thought a blushing & a perplexed Ino.

_'You're the most troublesome person I find besides my Kaa-san Naruto'_, thought Shikamaru .

_'Naruto, you look cool buddy'_, thought the food sweeper.

On the other hand, Sakura was relieved to see Naruto for the second time & on the same day, well that was something.

_'Thank Kami! I hope you can stop Sasuke-kun Naruto'_, thought Sakura while she tried to wake up Lee, but it looked like he wouldn't be waking up for sometime now.

"I don't care! Just get out of my way loser or I'll have to beat you to it", said Sasuke angrily while Naruto's eyes hardened.

"Try it teme!", growled Naruto.

"Gladly dobe, I always wanted to beat the shit out of you", said a smirking Sasuke as purple chakra flared around his body before he dashed towards Naruto.

Like before, he just vanished for the genins, but Naruto & Kurenai could clearly see him as his speed was only mid-chunin level now.

_'This would be over in one punch. The dobe wouldn't even be able to see me'_, thought Sasuke arrogantly while he readied his fist to punch Naruto before he went for his as his fist was about to connect, Naruto dodged it easily before delivering a bone crushing punch to Sasuke's gut resulting in him getting the wind knocked out & throwing some saliva, which was followed by a roundhouse kick to the side of his head. Sasuke flew back at even greater speed than he came at Naruto while colliding with several trees, breaking them in the process and finally skidded to a halt as blood seeped out of his forehead & mouth with several bruises here & there due to his collision course while he was clutching his stomach in pain.

To rest of the genins, it just happened in a second. First Sasuke just vanished to appear in front of Naruto, got a sucker punch to his gut and then vanished again to be found several metres away from them and was looking like he was beaten like a rag doll. To them, the trees were broken by an invisible force.

Sakura was not all that surprised by Naruto's speed as she had seen him fight Orochimaru, but was worried for Sasuke.

_'The Uchiha has no idea who he's dealing with right now'_, thought a smirking Kurenai while a chibi Kurenai in her mind was cheering with a banner of- _'Go Naruto-kun! Go Naruto-kun!'_.

Meanwhile Dosu, Kin & team 10 wer awestruck at the display of strength & speed by Naruto.

_'That...where...what the hell happened'_, thought a dazed Sasuke as his head was still spinning from the impact of that kick. Even his Sharingan didn't see that coming.

_'That'll bring down a notch'_, thought a smirking Naruto before he turned to Kin.

"Are you okay?", asked Naruto with a smile while Kin blushed at seeing his charming smile.

"Y-yeah...I m-mean no", she said with a small smile but then realised her condition. Even if she was talking to an enemy, a handsome one at that, she kind of felt safe in his presence, safer than anyone in her village. She was an orphan in her village and always had to fight for food, shelter & herself. Because she was an early bloomer, she had to train herself, defend herself from any possible rape attempts. In Oto, women in general were frowned upon and were considered weaklings. Because of that, her teammates never treated her even humanely. She absolutely despised her village, her teammates and Orochimaru.

But was brought out of her musings when she again felt a sense of calmness & sereness flow through her body like before, also noticing that she almost no longer felt that excruciating pain she was feeling a moment ago.

Kin looked up to see Naruto bent in front of her while he was applying some kind of white chakra that she had never seen before, on her damaged rib region. She was surprised to see that he wasn't staring at her chest unlike all the males of Oto, but rather was tenderly applying this strange chakra which oddly was working like a pain killer & a relaxation remedy.

Meanwhile, oddly Ino & as expected Kurenai were feeling jealous of the treatment that Kin was receiving.

_'Wait! This shouldn't be happening. Ofcourse Naruto is cute, handsome, caring, kind, charming...Ahh! What the hell is wrong with me?'_, thought Ino as she clutched her head while Shikamaru & Chouji were puzzled by her awkward behaviour.

_'Blondes are just troublesome'_, thought Shikamaru while Ino was lost in her own thoughts.

All her life, she had dreamed of a man who cared for her & loved her. A man who was handsome, kind, loving, funny, caring & a charming person. Sure Sasuke was handsome, but what else? He never smiled, kind, loving & caring were miles away from his name. But now she realised that the reason she was after Sasuke was mainly to prove herself the best, that she was better than Sakura & all her female classmates. She never realised when her silly childish crush got converted into a crippled race of 'who-gets-Sasuke' competition, especially with Sakura. But now that she thought, will she ever be happy if she got Sasuke? A big NO! In him, she didn't need the Byakugan to see that he was a stuck-up spoiled genin, who only craved for power & nothing else. But here, she had never seen this side of Naruto. If she knew he was like this, she may have had drop dead fallen for him in the academy. But she was too blind to see it.

She also felt ashamed at how she treated Naruto. Although, she didn't hit him often like Sakura did, but she was still always mean & indifferent to him. Back then, if she would have taken the time of the day to observe him, she would have surely thought of him as a cute, funny and an exciting guy. But maybe they could still be friends, or even more. Maybe she still had a chance?

* * *

><p><strong>So their was your fifth chapter, I hope you liked it! And if you didn't like it, don't worry, I think you'll like the upcoming chapters. And again, I ask of you to review, PLEASE! I read them all. The fourth chapter got the least of reviews until now, so yeah, review please. And thanks for showing your continued support. The next chapter should be up in a week atmost.<strong>

**Well, Ja Ne!**


	6. A Meeting with An Old Friend

**Hey guys, so here's the sixth chapter you've all been waiting for and sorry for the late update. Also I know that the Forest of Death arc is dragging on for too long, but there are some things that need to be done for the plot to progress. But don't worry, what I have in store for you in the preliminaries would be worth it. By the way, many-many thanks for the reviews & your encouragement. So here it begins-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-6-Meeting An Old Friend<strong>

* * *

><p><em>'Looks like we'll be having two more girls in the harem'<em>, thought a smirking Kurenai as she glanced at a blushing Kin & a thoughtful looking Ino. Meanwhile it started to rain, getting heavier by each passing second.

"Wh-Why are you helping me?", asked Kin but Naruto simply smiled at her.

"Do I need a reason to help pretty ones like you", said Naruto with his trademark foxy grin, still oblivious to the fact that he was flirting with her. She blushed at his reply but started to shiver in cold when the rain started to pour heavily. Naruto, seeing her torn clothing covered Kin with his cape. He was about to stand when he heard Sasuke yell.

"**Katon: Housenka No Jutsu**(Fire Release: Mythical Fire Phoenix Technique)"

Kin's eyes widened when she saw numerous compressed fireballs coming their way.

_'What a fool! Using fire jutsu when it's raining. Sometimes I question his sanity'_, thought Naruto as he picked up a blushing Kin bridal style and easily dodged the fireballs.

"Alright teme, it's time to end this. I've wasted enough time with you", growled Naruto as he created three shadow clones, Kin still in his arms who was unconsciously snuggling into his chest.

_'Right now, I'd give anything to be in her position'_, thought Kurenai longingly.

"Shutup dobe! I'm an Uchiha, you should be honored that you're fighting me", spat Sasuke as his purple chakra flared.

"I would rather be honoured to kick that stick deeper into your stinking ass", said Naruto with a bored like expression on his face while everyone present except Sasuke & Sakura were struggling to control their laughter.

_'That curse mark is getting out of control. I have to do something & quick. I should preserve my chakra, so sub-elemental jutsus are out of the question, but the basic ones, he'll just copy. No way I'm giving him anything on a silver platter. But wait! Yeah, that might work'_, thought Naruto as an idea popped into his mind.

"Why you loser-", growled the Uchiha before he was interrupted by Naruto.

"Look! Itachi, behind you!", yelled Naruto while pointing his finger behind Sasuke.

"What! Where is he? I'm gonna kill that traitor!", exclaimed Sasuke as he looked around frantically behind him. Meanwhile Naruto signalled his first shadow clone who went through a couple of hand signs at mid-chunin pace. On the other hand, Naruto & Kurenai were having trouble controlling their laughter, the Uchiha prodigy fell for a lame trick.

_'Un-fucking-believable'_, both thought simultaneously.

**"Magen: Narakumi No Jutsu**(Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique)"

Sasuke's eyes widened when he saw Itachi shimmer into existence with the dead bodies of his clan laying at his feet.

"You'll always be weak otouto", said Itachi in a monotone voice.

Sasuke immediately became enraged and was about to attack Itachi when his Sharingan noticed the chakra fluctuations around his surroundings.

_'A genjutsu!'_, thought Sasuke as he immediately dispelled it.

"Hehe, too late Sasuke-teme"**,**said the real Naruto who was currently holding Kin while the shadow clone who casted the genjutsu had his palm opened to face Sasuke.

"**Banshou Tenin**(All Creation Attraction)", Sasuke's eyes widened when he felt an invisible attracting force on his body and was pulled towards the shadow clone at high speeds. Meanwhile the second shadow clone was already going through a short set of handseals.

"**Suiton: Suijinheki**(Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)", whispered the second shadow clone as he slammed both of his palms onto the ground, and using the water from rain, created a water wall in front of them while the third clone also went through a couple of handseals.

'_Let's fry the teme!'_, thought the third shadow clone with a smirk.

"**Raiton: Kaminari Kangekiha**(Lightning Release: Thunder Inspiration Wave)", exclaimed the clone as he shot a concentrated wave of intense white electricity from his index finger into the water wall , the other hand holding the wrist of his attacking hand. He kept his finger in position to control the electricity so that it only flows through the water wall & doesnot electrocut anybody else.

When Sasuke collided with the wall, he could only scream from the intense pain he was feeling, his whole body twitching due to the shockwave while the others flinched at his condition. The curse mark receded back while Sasuke slipped into unconscious as he fell on the wet ground with a thud. Naruto dispelled his shadow clones while everyone's jaws were on the ground. He just pulled off a feat that not even chunins are capable of.

'_He already knows chakra nature manipulation, and that too with two elements? What was that jutsu that pulled the Uchiha? And most of all- HOW IN THE NAME OF NINE HOLY FLAMING HELLS CAN HE DO A GENJUTSU'_, thought Kurenai as she rubbed her temples in frustration.

'_He's on a whole other level than us'_, thought all the genins except Kin who was currently enjoying the warmth of Naruto's body.

At the same time, Neji & Tenten arrived to see the current scene. Tenten went over to wake up Lee while Neji landed in front of Naruto. He had seen the fight between the Uzumaki & the Uchiha from his Byakugan and was surprised to see Naruto's skill, but still, fate has decreed this genin a loser.

"Fate has decreed you a hindrance Uzumaki", said Neji in his cold tone as he glared at Naruto, his Byakugan blazing to add to the effect.

" And fate has decreed you a stuck up asshole Hyuuga", growled Naruto as he glared back while Kin restrained herself from laughing at the comment.

"Neji! Let's go, Lee's not waking up, we'll have to carry him", said Tenten but not before blushing when she saw Naruto.

"Know this that your fate has already been decided", said Neji as he left the area with his teammates.

"Phew! Well, that went well", said a grinning Naruto.

"Kin! What do you think you're doing laying in his arms, let's get outta here you weakling", spat Dosu. Naruto frowned at the way Dosu talked to her. He could tell she was not treated well by her teammates, if her shivering in fear was not any indication to go by. He looked at her when he felt her clutch him tightly to her and was surprised to see her eyes. They were pleading, almost begging him to not let her go, just like his were when he was with the Hokage after an attack from the villagers. Her face looked so pretty & cute, small glistening raindrops on her lips & her sparkling black eyes made him want to kiss her and he almost did.

"She'll not be going anywhere! We'll take her with us to the tower. You already have one injured teammate to deal with, I'll take care of her", said Naruto with authority while glaring at Dosu.

"B-But she's our teammate-", Dosu was interrupted was Naruto.

"And you don't treat her like one! Now get out of here before I kick your ass like the teme", said Naruto with a threatening glare. Dosu did not argue much, rather took an unconscious Zaku & got out of the area. Meanwhile, Kin was barely holding back tears of happiness. For the first time in her life, someone had helped her & treated her humanely, well except for her best friend-Tayuya.

"Th-Thank you so much", said a blushing Kin as she felt him clutch her to his chest tightly.

"Not a problem Kin-chan. By the way, my name is Uzumaki Naruto", said a grinning Naruto while Kin nodded with a smile & a pink tint on her cheeks. He then gazed towards Sasuke & sighed.

'_Why wouldn't you learn Sasuke? I know you suffered at the hands of Itachi-sensei, but power isn't everything. I promised sensei that I would look out for you, but if I have to break every bone in your body for you to see the reality, then so be it'_, thought Naruto with sadness while eventually it stopped raining.

"Yo! Troublesome guy, got a minute there", said Shikamaru in a bored tone as he waved at Naruto. He turned his head and a smile graced his lips.

Him, Shikamaru, Chouji & Kiba were best friends in academy. Although, he & Kiba had a friendly rivalry, but Shikamaru & Chouji were in a sense, true friends for him. They played together in the academy, ate together & bunked classes together, but later went their separate ways. However, Shikamaru & Chouji were still best friends. But among the rookie nine, ones that Naruto trusted the most were Chouji, Shikamaru & Hinata.

"Hey there lazy ass", said Naruto with a goofy grin.

"Ramen", greeted Chouji with a smirk, "Ah Barbeque! I see you still managed to sneak some food from the proctors, eh?", said Naruto as he glanced at the potato chips packet in Chouji's hands.

"So Naruto, no offence but tell me one thing, are you the strong, genius & a prodigy one we saw a moment ago or the weak, idiot & a deadlast we've seen in the academy?", asked Shikamaru with rare curiosity in his voice.

"Oh ho! So I've confused the Shougi genius, that counts for a party, hehe... Well, for your question, mix both the personalities, what do you get?", asked a grinning Naruto.

"An enigma", said a bored Shikamaru.

"That's what I am Shika, that's what I am", said Naruto while Kin could only blink at the awkward conversation going between them. This was the Chunin exams dammit, every team for itself and they were acting like nothing was going on. But she could tell that Naruto was on his guard if they tried to attack him.

"So Naruto, care to tell us about your...changes?", asked Chouji.

"That, you'll have to ask the Hokage. But that aside, you aren't going to try anything funny are you? Cause I don't want to hurt my long time friends", said Naruto in a serious tone.

"We aren't that low to attack a fellow squad who's already crippled. Besides, if we would've wanted your scroll, we wouldn't have intervened. So yeah, you can keep the scrolls", said Shikamaru in a lazy tone while Naruto nodded with his reason as he found no deception in his words, but still wasn't going to relax until they left. He knew Shikamaru was a genius and wasn't going to underestimate him.

"Um, hey Naruto", said a meek voice. Naruto tilted his head to see Ino standing behind her teammates. Instead of greeting her like he always did because of his mask, a deep frown etched on his face.

"What are you planning Ino? If you think that your 'nice scroll' act would get you the scrolls, then you're dead wrong", said Naruto seriously while team 10's & Kin's eyes widened at his hostility.

"What are you talking about Naruto? We told you-", spoke Chouji but he was interrupted.

"I don't care! I trust you & Chouji but not her, NEVER!", spat Naruto, his insecurities rising to the surface. He could accept Sakura's sudden change in behaviour due to the trauma of fighting a Sannin and that she was his teammate, but here Ino who wasn't even his teammate, just coming out of the blue & greeting him like that, he couldn't trust her. After all, she too treated him like trash though not to Sakura's extent, but still, this might be a plot to steal their scrolls & impress her oh so 'Sasuke-kun'.

"B-But I don't want the scrolls Naruto. I was just greeting you", said Ino in a sad tone.

"Stop your bullshit Ino! You mean to tell me that after all these years you're properly greeting me now? When the Chunin exams are going on? I don't believe that crap! Why shouldn't I think that you're trying another lame trick to impress Sasuke? ", said Naruto angrily. Tears threatened to fall from Ino's eyes and they did, but weren't noticeable as they mixed with water droplets on her face due to the rain while Shikamaru & Chouji could understand Naruto's logic, she did treat him badly so they can't except him to even treat her as a peer so quickly.

"We should be going. See you at the tower Shika, Chouji", said Naruto as he went past them with Kin in his arms towards Sakura who was currently tending to Sasuke whereas team 10 went their separate way with a silently sobbing Ino. Kin was confused as to why he behaved that way, but she knew better than to interfere into someone's personal matters.

'_Great! Now Sakura's gonna revert back to her fan girl mode. To think that I thought she could change'_, thought Naruto with frustration evident on his face, he sighed while Kin watched him with confusion.

"How is his condition Sakura?", asked Naruto while expecting a banshee screech of- 'NARUTO-BAKA! LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO MY SASUKE-KUN!', but he was really, really flabbergasted when she instead smiled at him.

"Oh, he's much better now. He only has a mild fever. The beating that you gave him must have pushed those black markings back SHANNARO!", said Sakura while playfully screaming the last part as she waved her fist in air.

A large sweatdrop formed on Kin's head, _'This team is rather...wierd. I can see why Orochimaru had an interest in this squad, the teme always had a fetish for wierd things after all'_, she thought afterwards while Naruto was just gobsmacked.

"Hehe, sorry just joking. But yeah, he's gonna be fine now. It was all thanks to you Naruto, that he was brought back. I could see that the foul chakra was interfering with his mind. The use of electricity to stop that mark from spreading & stun him was an ingenious idea indeed", said Sakura seriously, not at all surprised that Naruto knew chakra nature manipulation as he did warned her before while Kin nodded with her.

"Wh-Who are you? There's no way that you're the Sakura who I know", said Naruto shakily, not able to contain his shock.

"I told you Naruto, I wouldn't blame you over something so trivial. You're the strongest member of our team, so it was natural you had to stop him", she said with conviction in her voice while Kin could only wonder about what was going on between these two.

Naruto could only nod dumbly. Was this a 'Surprise Naruto' day? First that proctor says that she knows about his mask, then that snake freak attacks them, then a good Itachi comes to save the day, who was supposed to be a psycho killer lusting for power, then he comes to know about his doujutsu, Uchiha clan & what not, then he learns that Sakura was willing to change which was in a sense a rigid metal trying to bend it's shape. Then the biggest shocker, the Kyuubi No Kitsune, the supposed almighty demon so fearsome that even the kage level shinobi piss their pants in its presence was a female, a damn HOT female and if that was not enough, she was attracted to him. Oh no doubt, he would always remember this day, the day that changed his life drastically- the Chunin Exams Day. He could only describe this day in only one word- troublesome.

'I NEED MY RAMEN DAMMIT!', thought Naruto as he inwardly cried anime tears. The other shinobi may find it funny, but Ramen was his stress buster, his way of coping with so much stress and depression in his life, along with training of course. That aside, he was brought out of his musings when he felt a soft hand on his cheek, whisker marks to be specific.

"Naruto-kun, ...are you alright?".

"NARUTO!"

"Wh-What?", asked a blushing Naruto when he felt Kin's soft touch & heard her soft voice followed by a shout from Sakura.

"Sheesh! What's wrong with you? I was asking you about what should we do next?", asked Sakura with an annoyed expression while Naruto laughed sheepishly. Meanwhile Kin was as red as a tomato.

'_What's wrong with me? We've just met, and I'm already calling him Naruto-kun'_. Seeing his tired expression, she couldn't help but worry for him. Seeing his cute whisker marks, she couldn't resist but touch them, seeing his sheepish smile, her heart fluttered. What was this strange feeling, emanating from the pit of her stomach which spreads through her body like a wild fire.

"Ehehe, sorry. But, I think we should get to the tower as fast as possible seeing as we already have both scrolls. There's no need to rest here or the other teams might attack us. We have three days to reach there, so we can head there at a steady pace", he explained while Sakura nodded.

"But what about her? She's our enemy and attacked us. She tried to kill me even though I offered our scroll", said Sakura while glaring at Kin.

"I-I'm really sorry, but I had no choice. If you didn't notice, I was constantly holding back against you & fought you myself so that my teammates couldn't injure you badly. I was trying to stall time as much as I could. When your fellow team came to assist you, I advised my team to leave in hopes that they would agree but... but they only treat me like some useless pile of trash", said Kin as she sobbed at the last part while clutching Naruto's cape to her chest tightly which was currently acting as a blanket for her. Sakura looked at her with pity & sadness, she could only wonder what would happen if Naruto & Sasuke treated her like that.

'_She's just like me. I'll make sure to atleast protect her from those idiots'_, thought Naruto as he clutched Kin to his chest tightly while she snuggled into it & started crying louder.

"Shh, Kin-chan, don't cry. I'll make sure that they wouldn't lay a single finger on you", whispered Naruto in her ear.

"Really?", asked Kin with teary eyes and a cute expression on her face. Naruto couldn't resist & kissed her on her petty nose leading to a burning red face of Kin.

"Absolutely!", exclaimed a grinning Naruto who created two shadow clones but with a little difficulty as Kin was still in his arms.

'_At times like these I wish I could do seal-less jutsus. Oh well, I guess I have to improve my chakra control or wait for the ascension of Rinnegan'_, he pondered.

"Naruto, I think I should carry her or else you wouldn't be able to fight if another team attacks us", spoke Sakura while Naruto shook his head.

"Can't do that Sakura. I'm providing Kin-chan my chakra constantly, which is in a sense acting as a painkiller. Several of her ribs are broken & needs to be treated as fast as possible. Besides, you're already injured and low on chakra, you wouldn't be able to carry her for long. My shadow clone here will carry Sasuke while the other will keep a watch for any backside attacks", explained Naruto while Sakura was surprised that he formulated a plan. As far as she knew, he never bothered for any plans or strategies, but maybe that too was a part of his mask.

"You take a foodpill. I'll carry Kin and remain in front, you would stay behind me followed by my shadow clones", said Naruto.

"That sounds like a plan. But wait, how can your chakra reduce her pain. That's not possible unless you know medical jutsus", said Sakura while Naruto glared at her.

"Oh right, no questions", said Sakura as she put a finger on her lips while the shadow clone slunged Sasuke on his shoulder.

"If we move steadily, we can reach there in a couple of hours excluding any attacks or hindrances", said Naruto but noticed that Kin had fallen asleep in his arms resulting in him smiling warmly at her peaceful face whereas Sakura ate a foodpill.

"Alright, let's go", said Naruto as they all left the clearing. All the while, Kurenai was listening to their conversation as she had moved closer to their position under a powerful genjutsu. She pitied the Yamanaka's condition, but the girl had it coming. On the other hand, she was saddened after hearing about Kin's insecurities. She was also surprised by Sakura's behaviour and the level of maturity shown by her. But most importantly, she was proud of her Naruto for the way he handled the situation. He definitely deserved a kiss from her or maybe...more. She blushed while thinking about the kissing part. Kurenai had never kissed anyone, she could only wonder how a kiss with Naruto would feel like.

She was brought out of her day dreaming when team 7 along with Kin moved out of the area and hence began following them at a safe distance.

* * *

><p><strong>Team-7-After several hours of travelling:<strong>

* * *

><p>"Mooh, Naruto. I'm tired, we should rest up a bit", whined Sakura for 'who-know-how-many' times while Naruto sighed.<p>

'_She really has low stamina'_, thought Naruto while Kin was still asleep in his arms & Sasuke was unconscious.

"Take another foodpill Sakura, we're not stopping until we reach the tower. It is only an hour away now", said Naruto who had his Rinnegan activated but Sakura couldn't see it as she was behind him.

"We could've reached the tower earlier if it weren't for your stupid detours. And you should know that taking another food pill would cause me exhaustion later on", said Sakura in irritation.

During their travelling, Naruto & the shadow clone at the last constantly had their Rinnegan activated. With his doujutsu's ability to see chakra & heightened senses due to Ayumi, he was constantly changing routes to avoid traps or confrontations with any team.

"You can rest for three days when we reach there. Now stop your whining & take a foodpill ", spoke Naruto while Sakura huffed as she ate a foodpill, muttering words like 'meanie' in her breath.

_'Someone's been following us since we started moving, I should check it out'_, thought Naruto as he gave a mental command to the shadow clone at last to confront their follower.

Meanwhile, Kurenai was following them for two hours and wasn't winded at all, she was a jounin after all. Right now, she was only using a B-rank genjutsu, enough to hide from a chunin. But she was surprised when the shadow clone at the last of the group suddenly started moving backwards in her direction.

_'Did he notice me? Damn! Should have used a higher level genjutsu, but could it be that the Rinnegan can see chakra too, like the Sharingan & Byakugan?'_, she thought while her heart started beating a little faster at the prospect of meeting Naruto, even if it was a shadow clone. Although, she had met him a couple of times before, but then she only acted like a sensei and her attitude had remained professional. But now, she could open herself to him, she could melt the ice she had created around her. Kurenai was brought out of her musings when she heard Naruto's voice.

"Come out whoever you are. I know you're there", said the clone Naruto who abruptly spiked his chakra to jounin levels for a second leading to the genjutsu getting dispelled.

_'Damn! This was a high level jutsu, meaning whoever is here is definitely a chunin or above. I would have to stall as much time as I can so that the boss's team can get a safe distance from whoever this is. But could it be Orochimaru?_, thought the clone as he readied himself for an attack, his Rinnegan activated.

But he was surprised, when suddenly he was lifted in air while wooden branches wrapped around his black jounin-like vest. He turned his head to see a large tree behind him while cherry petals were flowing in mid-air around him.

_'Another genjutsu!'_, thought the clone before he felt the cold metal of a kunai against his neck.

"My my, cautious aren't we Naruto-kun?", whispered Kurenai in a changed childish-like feminine voice in his ear while she licked his ear lobe. He blushed when he felt her warm & soft tongue on his skin.

_'I think I've heard that voice before'_, thought Naruto before his eyes widened in realisation. Could it be her? Of course! How could he ever forget that voice?

"B-Benihime-chan", whispered Naruto in shock.

"Hehe, you finally remembered me, eh Naruto-kun. I'm surprised, it's been 6 years after all", whispered Kurenai.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback- 6 Years Ago<strong>

* * *

><p>A young six years old gloomy Naruto was sitting on a swing in the park while he watched other children play. He had tried so many times to play with them, but they would only beat him, bully him or call him monster while their parents glared at him. He was idly swinging with his head down when someone shadowed his face. He lifted his head to see three beautiful girls of his age standing in front of him. One had curly long black hair with crimson eyes, the other had brownish hair tied in a ponytail with the fairest skin tone &amp; the last one had long flowing purple hair.<p>

"Do you want play with us?", asked the crimson eyed(Kurenai) one while Naruto's eyes widened.

"You...play with me?", asked young Naruto with a cute expression. Kurenai, Hana & Yugao had to resist the urge to just glomp him.

"Sure! My name is Tsume and these are my friends- Benihime & Yugi", said Hana while Kurenai & Yugao smiled at him.

"My name... Naruto. But... they call me demon. You... shouldn't play with demons", said Naruto as he gazed sadly towards the ground.

"The villagers are idiots Naruto. They just can't see that you're not a demon. You should just ignore them", said Kurenai with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Me... no demon?", asked Naruto with hope. "Nope! You're just like us Naruto", said Yugao as she dragged him to his feet by holding his hand.

"Really? I'm like you?", asked Naruto with teary eyes. He thought that he was a monster, that's why the other kids didn't play with him. But he became ecstatic & happy when Hana shook her head.

"Yay! I knew 'dattebayo! Thank you, you three... very beautiful...like angels", said young Naruto in a thinking pose leading to the transformed kunoichis sporting a blush before they snapped out of their embarrassment.

"C'mon, let's play together. From now on, we'll be friends", said Kurenai while she dragged him with her.

After sometime, they said their goodbyes to him and went their own way. For months, they continued to play with him, often coming to his apartment and helping him with small chores. Over the months, they taught him how to speak, write & read properly, cooking etc. They couldn't do much as they were thirteen years old only right then, but they made sure to help him as much as possible. Over time, they fell in love with him but were ashamed to admit it because of the age gap while Naruto too became fond of them. But eventually, Hiruzen caught just of it & prohibited them from meeting him again. Naruto waited for his friends in the park or asked the villagers about it, nobody knew them or rather didn't bother to answer him as they were interested in beating him to an inch of his life.

He couldn't ask his jiji as they had told him them not to tell about their friendship to anybody, even the Hokage. Meanwhile, Hiruzen didn't believe Hana, Yugao & Kurenai as they were only thirteen years old and somebody may have tricked them in befriending Naruto & then attacking him. This had already happened several times with some children befriending Naruto because of their parent's persuasion and when he went to their homes to play, they would poison the food & planned several other methods to get rid of the demon spawn. So the Hokage had to be absolutely sure that Naruto stayed in trusted company. There were only three people that he trusted Naruto with right then- Kakashi, Jiraiya & Mikoto. Jiraiya had a spy network to maintain, Mikoto wanted to but Fugaku didn't allow her & Kakashi had drowned himself in Anbu missions & despair because of his sensei's death.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback End<strong>

* * *

><p>"Ofcourse I remember you! But where did you go? I searched for you everywhere. Why did you leave me?", asked Naruto while tears leaked out of his eyes while his eyes turned to normal oceanic blue color.<p>

"And where's Tsume-chan and Yugi-chan? Are they here too 'dattebayo", said Naruto frantically while he tried to free himself. Warmness flushed Kurenai's heart when she came to know that he still remembered them & was worried for them. She released the genjutsu as Naruto snapped out of it to find Kurenai standing in front of him while his eyes widened in surprise.

"K-Kurenai-sensei? What are you doing here & ...where's Benihime-chan?", asked a blushing Naruto while he pinched his nose to stop the blood from coming out. Due to rain, Kurenai was wet and her clothes were tightly hugging her body showing her curves & luscious D-cups. Even her nipples were noticeable due to the coldness.

But on the other hand, he was also afraid of her a bit. He'd heard about the famous ice-queens of Konoha, but among them, had only met Kurenai until now. He had seen the way she treated men who looked at her in any indecent way. Even those who behaved properly, she was usually cold to them like she was assuming they would ask her out or something. But he knew that it was all an act, she too wore a mask like him, so naturally she noticed it, him being experienced in the art of deception after all. Inside this cold sheet of glacial ice, he knew there existed a vulnerable & a lonely soul, eyes were the windows of one's soul after all.

"Were you checking me out young man?", asked Kurenai as she fakely narrowed her eyes while Naruto's eyes widened.

"N-No! Of course not! Why would I even dare think about you like that!", said Naruto while he waved his hands defensively.

"Are you saying that I'm not good enough for you?", asked Kurenai threateningly, still continuing her charade.

"W-What?", he exclaimed with surprise evident on his face while she slowly advanced towards him.

"You head me right, am I not good enough for you?", asked Kurenai as her heart sped up a bit while waiting for his answer.

"Ofcourse sensei! You're very beautiful like a goddess. I mean, any guy in his right mind can't ignore your unearthly beauty", said the clone Naruto honestly while she blushed furiously, and Naruto still as oblivious as ever even with his changed personality, glanced at her in confusion.

"Ne sensei, your face is all red. I think you'll catch a fever if you remain wet", said Naruto before Kurenai vanished completely from his sight to appear behind him. She circled her slender arms around his waist, her body tightly pressed against his while her head rested on her shoulders.

"There, this is much more comfortable Naruto-kun", said Kurenai in Benihime's voice while his eyes widened as he saw Kurenai from the corner of his eyes.

"D-Don't tell me that... that you're Benihime-chan", whispered Naruto in pure shock.

"I've been waiting for this day Kitsune-chan", whispered Kurenai while Naruto's eyes widened at the name. The only ones to ever call him that, were Benihime, Tsume & Yugi, often to tease him because of his foxy grin & whisker marks.

"Why?", whispered Naruto after coming over his initial shock while Kurenai blinked in confusion.

"Why did you leave me? Why lie to me? ...Why didn't you show me your true self", asked Naruto while his spiky hair shadowed his eyes.

"It's a long story Naruto-kun", said Kurenai.

"I've plenty of time. I'm only a shadow clone after all", said Naruto while Kurenai nodded. She then started explaining about why they had to transform themselves because of the villagers & Hokage and reasons behind them leaving suddenly because of the Hokage. Meanwhile, Naruto was getting angrier & enraged by the second.

"You mean to tell me that... jiji stole from me something that was possibly the only source of love, friendship & happiness I had in my life", asked Naruto while white chakra with a red hue started to pour out of his body.

"Calm down Naruto-kun. I know what he did was wrong, we tried to reason with him. But atleast, from now on we can be together as he allowed us today to reveal ourselves", said Kurenai while rubbing his cheek with one hand & his hair with the other. He inhaled deeply to calm himself down, also noticing that she smelled of red roses & white lilly while gradually his chakra receded back. He blushed when he noticed how tightly her impressive bust was pressed to his back while she smirked at seeing his red face.

"Like what you feel Naruto-kun", she said while rubbing her breasts against his back while his blush got darker in shade.

"W-Where is Tsume-chan & Yugi-chan? Who are they in real?", asked Naruto to escape the embarrassing situation while he eagerly waited for her answer to know who his childhood friends really were.

"That is a surprise Naruto-kun", said Kurenai as she kissed the back of his neck. She was now really resisting the urge to kiss him. But she also didn't want her first kiss to be with a shadow clone, so she controlled herself for now.

"But tell me, how were you able to sense me? Was it because of your doujutsu?", asked Kurenai while she could feel Naruto's body become stiff.

"H-How did you...", he trailed while his mouth was open in shock.

"Hokage-sama told us about your Rinnegan, and don't worry, we wouldn't tell anyone about it. It's up to you when you decide to reveal it", Naruto nodded hesitantly.

"But we don't know it's abilities, until a few hours ago, it was supposed to be a myth after all. And we also know about Itachi and his partner. So I'm looking forward to how much stronger you have become Naruto-kun"

"But I've always wanted to ask you something Beni..Kurenai-chan", said Naruto while Kurenai blushed at the addition of '-chan'. Oh, how much she had dreamed of this moment, him calling her 'Kurenai-chan' or any other nickname he wanted to.

"Why did you, Tsume-chan & Yugi-chan helped me? All the villagers hated me, children of my age bullied me and the whole ninja populace except a few were indifferent to me".

"Did you know Naruto-kun, your mother was a role model for us. You have Konohamaru, Udon & Moegi who look up to you, the same way we practically worshipped her. Her beauty, elegance, courage, determination, never say die attitude enthralled & motivated us to no end. She was the major driving force in our shinobi careers. Like you, her personality was bright as a sunny day for her friends but for her enemies, as dark as a thunderstorm. All the villagers liked her. However, they didn't know that she ever had a baby or if she was even married", silence reigned upon the area before she continued.

"We were the ones that took care of her during pregnancy, although we were a bunch of brats at that time but she too always welcomed us with open arms. But that aside, we couldn't see her son get treated like that, so we decided to help you as much as we could. I know that you want to know more about her & your father, but you'll have to ask Hokage-sama about your parents, it's a highly classified secret", finished Kurenai with sadness at being able to tell Naruto about his mother anymore.

"But can you atleast show me how she looked", he said with a hint of hope while she blinked.

"I guess I can. The law included about not telling you about your mother, but it didn't said anything about showing her to you. Sometimes it's better to bend the rules", said Kurenai as she released Naruto from her hold.

"**Henge**(Transform)", Naruto turned around to see what was the most beautiful existence his eyes had even shown to him. His face immediately went blood red while steam protruded out his nose & ears.

"T-This... m-my ... mother?", he stuttered while pointing a shaky finger at the transformed Kurenai.

* * *

><p><strong>So, how was it? Did you like it? Please review and tell me your opinion. Your suggestions &amp; opinions are constantly helping me in improving my writing skills, so continue the review barrage! Also, next chapter, preliminaries begin! Well, until next time. Ja Ne!<strong>


	7. A Dream To Be Accomplished

**Hey guys, so here's the seventh chapter. And thanks for the reviews. Well, some people have complained about being confused about names of Naruto's childhood friends, mainly with Tsume. I want to explain that Hana took her mother's name to introduce herself, so yeah, just so you know. **

**I just watched Naruto Shippuuden's fourth movie, it's so cool! Especially the part where Naruto & Minato combine their Rasengan to form a legendary super Rasengan, Naruto getting covered with chakra which spins around him just like the Rasengan and how the attack looks like Inuzuka's Fang Over Fang, only coated with chakra instead. Although it requires for similar chakra between the two users to resonate and Naruto has a distinct type of chakra in my fic but still, I'm thinking about including that as a collaboration attack, which includes Naruto & Kushina(She would know how to do Rasengan. If she taught Minato about Sealing Techniques, then maybe he also taught her the Rasengan. It would be a blast, mother & son kicking the enemy's ass together!) or Naruto & Jiraiya(Just imagine the possibilites! In future, when Naruto is in sage mode and Jiraiya too, they could combine their Odama Rasengans forming a Super Oodama Rasengan!). I still don't know how to make Naruto's chakra match with Kushina( maybe Naruto and her both using Nine Tails chakra) or Jiraiya ( don't have the slightest of idea). **So if there are any suggestions, please do tell.****

**Also, I think this movie marks a new pairing in fanfiction universe: NarutoXSara(The Puppet Queen, hehe), but I think she's really cute and would match up with Naruto pretty ****nicely. But enough of my rambling, here goes-**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Chapter-7- A Dream To Be Accomplished<span>**

"T-This... m-my ... mother?", he stuttered while pointing a shaky finger at the transformed Kurenai.

He now completely understood what Ayumi was trying to describe about her, his mother was a definition of angel- a top quality one at that. He just didn't know how to describe her. Beautiful, amazing, breath-taking, hot, sexy, gorgeous- all these words were just not enough to describe her unearthly beauty.

'_Holy mother of Rikudou Sennin! Damn! Never thought my mother would be so... well...so HOT!'_, thought Naruto before muttering about 'his father being a lucky bastard'. Even though he knew she was his mother, he couldn't help but think about her as a women.

Standing in front of him was a henged Uzumaki Kushina in skimpy civilian clothes- courtesy of Kurenai. She had long flowing red hair, heart shaped face, light violet eyes, all in all her face was just perfect. All the body curves were in right proportions, with D-cup breasts, milk creamy flawless skin, slim toned waist & legs and had a hour glass figure. A small portion of her forehead was covered by her red silky hair held by a clip, making her even more cute & beautiful. If Ayumi wasn't a bijuu, he surely would have thought of her as his mom's sister.

"Hehe, I kind of expected that kind of reaction", said Kurenai/Kushina as she had her hand on her hips. Naruto slowly lifted his hand to her face while moisture gathered in his eyes.

"K-Kaa-san...", he said shakily while streams of tears flowed down his cheeks as his hand cupped her cheek. Kurenai/Kushina blushed at the contact before leaning into his touch while she put her hand on his hand to deepen the touch. Meanwhile Naruto activated his Rinnegan, he wanted her mother's face to be forever burned into his mind. The Rinnegan could copy images or any form of writing, an ability he discovered during the training while reading the scrolls. Kurenai gasped silently when she saw his eyes, they were beautiful. His purple eyes seemed to have a glow to them, also the effects of his white chakra seemed to increase.

"It's okay Nauto-kun. I know you miss her, but life is all about moving on. She wouldn't want you to cry for her everyday, rather she would want you to accomplish your dreams & be happy. Did you know what was her dream when she was of your age?", she said as she cancelled the henge while Naruto wiped his tears with his forearm before shaking his head.

"When asked, she would always say she wanted to become the first female hokage, similar to your dream", she said while Naruto's eyes widened at the prospect of learning that their dreams were so similar.

"Accomplish your dreams Naruto-kun, fulfill her dream. I know you can do it", she said as she put her hand on his shoulder while he started to chuckle softly after coming over his shock.

"You're very precious to me, so I'm not gonna lie to you Kurenai-chan. Although a large part of me understands the behaviour of the villagers towards me, but still a small part of me hates these villagers with passion and wants nothing more than to kill them. That part of me you can say that it is the negative Naruto, the one which was born through emotions like pain, hate, fear, loneliness & revenge, the part which I've surpressed within the deep recesses of my mind", he said while Kurenai was shocked that inside this bright Naruto, there existed a dark one wich wanted to get back at these foolish villagers for how they treated him since he was a baby. A large part of her totally agreed with getting rid of these ignorant villagers who couldn't tell the difference between a kunai & a sealed kunai.

"But...", he inhaled deeply, "But, I think there's still hope for the younger generation. Right now, their views are influenced by their parents, but I'll make them see the truth. Unless a miracle happens, I know that it will be very difficult to change the views of the elder generation, if not completely impossible. The Shodaime, Nidaime & the Yodaime would be ashamed of these people's ignorance. When jiji gazes upon his village from the monument, I see nothing but sadness, pity & shame in his eyes.

Sadness that he couldn't change the villager's views of me, pity at their ignorance and shame at what the people of this village have come to. Sometime ago, I thought about leaving this village thinking that becoming Hokage of these pathetic villagers be damned. But I've learned that a king doesnot chooses its people, but rather the people elect their king. The only thing the king can do is change their views towards him", he paused to regain his breath while Kurenai was stunned at the level of maturity that he was showing . To go that deep, he truly had the traits of an upbeat visionary.

"Hehe, it would have been the absurd height of cowardness to leave my village. Running from my problems, giving up on my dream, that's not the trait of an Uzumaki and I never back down from any challenge", he lifted his head to gaze into her eyes. Her breath got caught in her throat when she saw the fire in his eyes.

"From now on, no more Mr Nice guy. If they glare at Uzumaki Naruto, he will NOT smile back but return it thousand times stronger, if they attack him, he would not hold back to defend himself, consequences be damned!", he pointed his thumb at his chest.

"I WILL become the best Hokage of Konoha, and if anybody has a problem with that, well they can go eat their shit! I'm tired of trying to gain recognition from these stupid villagers. From now on, I'll treasure the precious people that I have. I'll fulfil my dream, for my precious people & most importantly my mother", he said a determined smirk while Kurenai smiled at him lovingly.

"I guess the Rinnegan did wonders to you, didn't it?", she spoke while he raised his eyebrows.

"Surprisingly, your guess is right. After the awakening of Rinnegan, I have a somewhat changed outlook of life. That's why I refuse to hide under a stupid mask or dress like a clown, I'll bust these villagers straightforward", he said with an evil foxy grin while Kurenai smirked.

'_The villagers better watch themselves from now on'_, she thought.

'But, I'd better go Kurenai-chan. The overload of information may cause a headache to boss, he already has a lot on his mind lately", he said while she nodded before walking up to him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Take care Naruto-kun & be safe. In preliminaries, kick some ass for me", said a grinning Kurenai while a blushing Naruto grinned sheepishly. He rubbed his back head before giving her a thumbs up.

"Sure Benihime-chan", he said before dispelling himself while Kurenai smiled at where he was a moment ago.

"And I promise to you Naruto-kun, that I would always love you, remain by your side & help achieve your dream", she whispered to herself before gazing at the sky.

"You'll be proud of your son Kushina-nee-chan", she said while a few tears escaped her ruby eyes. She really missed her idol who she had always thought of as an elder sister.

'_I'd better report to Hokage-sama. There's no use in tracking them anymore. They're already about to reach the tower'_, she thought before shunshining out the area.

* * *

><p><strong>Iwagakure- Tsuchikage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>Iwa's current Tsuchikage- Onoki of the Twin Scales, a shinobi renowned for his experience, flying &amp; dust techniques was currently battling an enemy, probably a common enemy of all the kage's except the Akatsuki- paperwork.<p>

"Damn! My back is killing me, if it weren't for my old age... ACK!", grunted Onoki in pain. If anyone outside the village would've seen him, his/her thoughts probably would've been on the line-

'_This ol' shrimp mothafucka' is the Earth Shadow duns? Bet this baldy punk couldn't even bend to see his own scrawny rotten limpin' dick lol'_.

Onoki was interrupted by a knock to his door.

"Enter", he said without looking up from his paperwork.

"Tsuchikage-sama!", a Chunin walked in with a scroll.

"What is it this time?", the Tsuchikage said in his old gruff voice, looking bored. Generally, these frantic interruptions were all about his granddaughter- Kurotsuchi, wreaking havoc in the village, mainly to test her skills or pass her time as most of the time she remained bored anyways.

"This is serious Tsuchikage-sama! We have received an urgent top-secret message from the Kazekage", said an anxious Chunin while Onoki raised his eyebrows.

"What does he want?", he pondered while taking the scroll, " You can go now", he said, the Chunin bowed before leaving his office. He put the official Tsuchikage's stamp on the scroll, the stamp mark glowed for a second, before the scroll opened with a 'click' sound. He then started reading the scroll, his eyes getting wider by the second before an unsettling small smirk formed on his old face.

'_Well well, payback's a bitch, isn't it Konoha?'_, he thought with excitement.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile: The Forest of Death: The Tower<strong>

* * *

><p>Team 7 along with Kin had reached the tower a while ago, they had just entered the hall before Sakura fell to her knees, all sweaty &amp; was panting heavily.<p>

"Naruto... you're one... ruthless slavedriver", she said while panting. Meanwhile, Kin was still asleep while Sasuke hadn't woken up yet. Meanwhile Naruto was lost in his own thoughts, ever since the shadow clone had dispelled itself, the information that he gained had shocked him to his very core. He had almost dropped Kin due to the shock, but composed himself although barely. But his shadow clone couldn't hold his shock, and in the process dropped Sasuke. And he had to hold back himself from rolling in laughter, Sasuke was just waking up when he was dropped, resulting in his head hitting a branch and he again lost consciousness. Sakura didn't notice anything because she was in front of the shadow clone, already tired up and panting.

'_Even nature didn't want to hear about his rambling about the Uchiha's pride'_, thought an amused Naruto. But that aside, he was really giddy that he had found his childhood friend after all this time- although in reality she was the genjutsu mistress, and most of all, he saw his mother's appearance today. Just thinking about her made him blush.

'_What's wrong with me? She's my mother, and besides, it's not like she's going to come back from the dead'_, thought Naruto sadly while choking up his unshed tears, he would never be able to meet his mother again. However, he was dead set in fulfilling his mother's dream and telling those villagers that who was the boss now.

He was brought out his thoughts when he sensed his cheeks being pinched. He focused his vision to see Sakura staring intently at him while pinching his cheeks, hard!

"OW! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? IT HURTS...", he yelled as his whiskers marks were sensitive but was interrupted when she put her hand over his mouth while glaring at him.

"Shhsh! She's asleep, do you want to wake her up?", she whispered angrily, but had a faint blush on her cheeks due to the contact.

'_Damn! Who would've thought he would become so handsome'._

"Mmph!", tried to say Naruto in muffled voice but couldn't remove her hand as his arms were busy holding Kin.

"What? I can't understand you", said Sakura while she leaned in close to hear him. _'Crazy girl!'_, he thought before creating a shadow clone.

"Get your hands off Boss Sakura-baka!", yelled the clone dramatically while she removed her hand, a sheepish expression on her face before the shadow clone's words registered in her mind.

"What! How dare you call me Sakura-baka clone-baka!", she yelled while pointing an accusing finger at him.

"Oh sorry, what was your name again? Yeah, it was Haruno Forehead", said the clone while he transformed into Ino.

"Why you Ino-pig...", she growled while advancing towards him.

"Yeah! Bring it on forehead. I'll-", the clone was dispelled before it could complete the sentence, courtesy of Naruto whose eyes were twitching dangerously.

"Sakura! Come over here", said Naruto authoratively which left no room for argument. Sakura gulped nervously before nodding. She had seen him what he could do if angry and wasn't going to risk it.

"Y-Yeah?", asked Sakura meekly under the glare that Naruto was weighing upon her.

"Open both these scrolls and don't do anything silly now. Kin is already injured and we have to treat her injuries as fast as possible", he said while handing her the scrolls. She took the scrolls before opening both of them at the same time. Smoke started arising out of the scrolls while Sakura blinked in confusion.

"These are summoning scrolls, drop them!", he yelled while Sakura threw them away from her. The smoke cleared for them to see Umino Iruka standing there with proud smile on his face.

"Congratulations you three! You have passes the second part of Chunin exams", said the academy teacher while Sakura whooped with joy. Naruto was just happy to see his brother-like sensei again.

"It's nice to see you again Iruka-sensei", he said with a smile while Iruka turned his head to him.

"N-Naruto? What the hell happened to you!", said a gobsmacked Iruka while Naruto sighed.

"It's an S-rank secret sensei, you just have to ask jiji about it", said Naruto while wondering how many times he would have to repeat that line today. Iruka could only nod dumbly, anything concerning Naruto just had to become an S-ranked secret.

'_I hope Kyuubi has nothing to do with this. Who knows it might be influencing Naruto'_, thought Iruka, concerned for his favourite student before his eyes landed on a girl in Naruto's arms and an unconscious Sasuke on the back of another Naruto he presumed was a shadow clone.

"What happened to Sasuke? And who is she in your arms?", asked a confused Iruka, but on the inside was proud that his brother like figure was becoming a man. Sakura glanced at Naruto, not sure about what to say about Sasuke's condition.

"He got exhausted in a fight we had with another team for the scroll, but is otherwise alright & only unconscious", he then glanced at a sleeping Kin with a small smile on his face, which didn't go unnoticed by Iruka.

"We found her injured on our way here. She was alone, so we took her with us for treatment", lied Naruto calmly while Iruka nodded. Sakura was amazed that Naruto could deceive an experienced Chunin, masking his emotions like that was just amazing.

"But that aside, do you know the meaning of these scrolls?", asked Iruka in his lecture voice while Naruto paled at that tone. He really wasn't in the mood to listen to any lecture right now. Sakura would have listened intently to Iruka, she being the book smarts & all, but was tired as hell & wanted nothing more than to hit the bed.

Iruka however didn't paid them any attention, rather took the scrolls and put them on the the uncompleted message on the back wall. He then started explaining the meaning of it, all the while facing the wall.

"So in nutshell, you should concentrate on enhancing your mental & physical skills. Any questions?", asked a smiling Iruka, proud at how well he had explained the riddle. He turned his head to see nobody but a scroll on the floor.

Confused as to where they went, he opened the scroll and started reading it.

* * *

><p><em>Sensei,<em>

_I already know the meaning of those scrolls, but thanks anyway for wasting your ten minutes explaining it. BUHAHAHAHAH! Spirits are always with you! _(Guess where I took that line from)

_Future Hokage of Konoha_

_Iruka-sensei,_

_Thanks for explaining whatever you did. We'll always remember it, although we didn't hear it. HAHAHAHAHA!_

_Shannaro!_

_Naruto: Sasuke is unconscious, but I know him pretty well. So according to me:_

_Servant,_

_Hn! You should be honoured to be my sensei. I've got my Sharingan to master & a traitor to kill, so I don't have any time to listen to your fucked up lectures. However, as your reward for your good-for-nothing efforts, I allow you to watch me fight like the elite I am._

_The Great Uchiha-sama (Leader of the Emo-clan)_

* * *

><p>Silence, pin-drop silence followed after Iruka had read the scroll.<p>

"Those...bloody...ingrates...", he hissed angrily with gritted teeth, his face red & his eyes screaming murder for team 7.

"NARUTOOOO!".

Meanwhile, team 7 along with Kin had found an empty restroom which were for the passing teams. The room was nothing special, but contained three single beds and the regular necessities which you find in a cheap hotel room. But in Naruto's opinion, it was much better than his apartment.

"Alright, you can rest here Sakura while I call for medical treatment", said Naruto while the doppelganger/shadow clone put Sasuke on the bed & dispelled itself. Naruto on not receiving any answer turned his head to see a loudly snoring Sakura on the bed, her arm hanging limply on the side of bed and drool escaping her mouth. He sweatdropped before chuckling lightly to himself.

'_I guess I really worked her to the ground eh. I don't know what caused you to change so much Sakura, maybe Orochimaru's interference, but I'm glad you did. Hopefully, just maybe, we still can be friends'_, thought Naruto as he reviewed her behaviour in the forest of death after his training. So far, she had done nothing suspicious, but still...

He then turned his gaze to Kin, who was starting to wake up and slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was Naruto's oceanic blue eyes and his warm smile sending vibrations through her body.

"Morning sleepyhead", he said while she shyly smiled back making Naruto just want to kiss her & never let her go. She then noticed her surroundings.

"Did we reach the tower?", she asked while he nodded.

"How are you feeling Kin-chan?", asked a concerned Naruto while she again blushed at '-chan' part to her name. Nobody had ever addressed her with so much kindness & concern in her village.

"I'm fine Naruto-kun, thanks to you", she said with a small smile while Naruto looked away with a small blush.

'_Man I gotta control myself, but she's so cute, so irresistible...'_, he thought while mentally slapping himself.

"A-Alright, I think it's mainly due to my chakra. Now I'm gonna slowly stop the flow of my chakra on your rib region, then tell me what you feel. I have a theory to confirm", he said as he slowly lowered the amount of chakra he was constantly giving to her. He watched as her face scrunched up until he completely stopped the flow.

"So, any difference from before?", he asked expectantly.

"I'm suddenly feeling tired, my body is still sore from the injuries, but surprisingly there's very little pain in my ribs which was damaged the most, but... how is that possible?", she asked in confusion while Naruto's eyes widened.

'_Great! Looks like apart from acting as a painkiller, it enhances & accelerates the body's immune system & healing factor. Guess there are some abilities of my doujutsu & chakra which I have to find on my own'_, he thought, excited that he could somewhat treat injuries with his chakra, although much slower than a medic could, but still it was damn useful!

'_It's the exact opposite of youki nature, which is harmful to our chakra coils, but still as much strong & potent'._

"I can't tell you much, but just that my chakra accelerates healing factor of one's body. You can refer it as a sort of a bloodline", he said while her eyes widened in surprise.

"That's so cool!", she exclaimed excitedly while Naruto grinned at her. He noticed that some of her personality traits matched his, mainly when she was excited about something.

"Alright, I think you should rest up a bit as we have two days until the second exam ends. Meanwhile, I'll look for a medic to completely heal your injuries", he said as he laid her on the third bed( Not that way you perverts!) while she nodded, albeit a bit sadly on losing his warmth. Naruto, on seeing her gloomy face bent down & kissed her on the forehead.

"Don't worry Kin-chan! I'll be back as fast as you can blink", he said while grinning as she blushed a scarlet red.

"Hai", she said happily before Naruto left the room. Several minutes later, he found a medic nin before sending her to their restroom for treatment of injuries of Kin, Sakura & Sasuke while he decided to roam for a while.

'_Oh man, I forgot my cape with Kin-chan. I think I look kinda cool with it'_, he thought while walking before he bumped into someone round a corner of the corridor.

"Ouch! Hey, watch where you're going idiot".

"Like you were watching... hey, you're that girl from the sand team. Um, what was your name,...Temari right?", he said while helping her to stand. She looked up and immediately blushed furiously upon seeing him.

'_Holy mother of pure wind! I mean...wow!'_, she thought while covering her cheeks with her hand to hide her blush leading to Naruto having a sweatdrop.

"Hey, are you alright?", he had just offered to help her stand, and she was blushing like he was demanding her virginity. Did he do something wrong?

'_It seems I have a knack for meeting weird people today'_, he thought dejectedly.

"Y-Yeah, thanks. But, who are you?", she asked in confusion while Naruto blinked in surprise.

"We just met some days ago. I'm Uzumaki Naruto, remember?", he asked expectantly while she pondered if she had heard that name before, she did ...but where? After sometime of racking her brain, her eyes widened in surprise.

"You mean to say that you're that idiot, annoying, loudmouth ninja wearing that kill me orange jumpsuit?", she asked before quickly clamping her mouth shut with her hands while his eyebrows twitched.

'_Was my acting that natural? Well, I did dig my own grave'_.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..."

"Don't worry, it's cool. Sometimes I do tend to act like an idiot", said a grinning Naruto.

"But what the heck happened to you?", she asked.

"That's a secret Temari-chan", he said teasingly while she blushed.

"But where's that clown paint & blood thirsty brother of yours", he asked jokingly while she giggled.

"Hehe, Kankurou is sleeping right now & Gaara... well you know, just trying to sleep", she said nervously, not wanting to reveal her brother's secret while Naruto nodded. He had sensed the evil aura of youki that Gaara seemed to be radiating constantly, thus he knew that Gaara too was a jinchuriki like himself.

"Oh well, I'd better be going. It was nice to meet you Temari & goodluck for the preliminaries", he said while walking past her.

"See you soon Naruto and... Hey wait! What do you mean by preliminaries?", she asked frantically.

"You'll see!", he yelled over his shoulder as he rounded the other corner and disappeared out of her sight leaving a perplexed Temari.

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: Two Days<strong>

* * *

><p>After his meeting with Temari, two days passed quickly for Naruto. Kin was perfectly alright after the medic had treated her &amp; Sasuke too awoke after sometime. The first thing after waking up he did was attack Kin and surprisingly for Naruto, she was easily able to hold her own until he arrived and stopped Sasuke. And not so surprisingly, the emo-king started demanding that Naruto teach him those jutsus that he used in the forest of death. The result being Naruto kept ignoring him, something that enrages Sasuke even more than his brother's presence. So as expected, Sasuke challenged Naruto to a rematch right there &amp; then while Sakura tried to play the peacemaker. Naruto just kept ignoring him, not wanting to waste his chakra. Eventually, Sasuke gave up and started doing what he does best i.e. brooding.<p>

Aside from that, Naruto again went to his mindscape & met Ayumi. They spent quality time with each other, Ayumi telling Naruto about his mother and all her experiences, she was a 'who-knows-how-much-old' demon after all. Naruto too enjoyed her company very much. After twelve years of loneliness, he had finally found a friend and he would be damned if he let this opportunity go to waste. He too shared his experiences, jokes, his pain and she understood him very well as she had seen his memories. He had finally found a shoulder to cry on, someone to hug when he was lonely, someone to embrace when he was asleep. He also changed his mindscape from that of a sewer to that of a beautiful landscape with lush green grass, dense forests, mountains and anything in nature that you could relate to peaceful & beautiful. To ensure that she wasn't lonely when he wasn't there, he created several animal species in the forests, especially foxes. She always played with baby kitsune and several other animals, to see her this happy, his heart leaped with joy.

She had also informed him that they could contact with each other telepathically when he was not in his mindscape but the seal was still strong for them to do that. But there was a solution, if he could find the key for the seal and weaken it just a little bit, not only would they be able to talk with each other telepathically but Naruto could access more of her tails. This led him to take a mental note to ask jiji about it, but he had to tell him about Ayumi first. However, he wasn't going to forgive the old man so easily for keeping his friends away from him, oh he will pay for it, believe it!

He also learned that the time frame was displaced whenever he was in his mindscape, but not on the level of Tsukiyomi. So he had spent more time with her than he expected and you could say that they were close to each other now.

Naruto had also spent time with Kin, getting to know more about her, about how she was treated in her village. He was shocked at how similar their life was up until now and he too told her about his life, though not about him being a jinchuriki. She too was surprised at how he was treated but eventually they became good friends. Kin also told him about her only best friend in her village- Tayuya. Naruto learned that although Tayuya had a foul mouth, she was a caring person, fierce & brute on the outside but soft & fragile on the inside and thay they supported each other in their difficult times.

Naruto tried to find team 8, he was eager to meet Hinata after all. His mask thrown aside, he could finally act normally and atleast be friends with her first and get to know each other better. He was also surprised when he heard that team 10 & Kin's team had passed the test, well he certainly didn't expect a lazy and a crippled team to pass. He also noticed that Ino looked a bit down & sad, but he didn't pay any attention, maybe she was sad because her Sasuke-kun lost to him in the forest.

On the final day, with two hours left to complete the test, all the teams were led to a big arena having a huge stone-made ram seal in the middle while there was an elevated railing platform on either side of the arena. Upon reaching there, Naruto noticed that the teams which had passed were- team 9, team 10, Kin's team, Kabuto's team and the sand team.

Except the passing teams, no-one else was in the arena right now while he noticed the surprised stares he was getting from Kabuto's team & Kakurou. Apparently Gaara was only interested in giving blood whoever his mother was. Naruto was however, more watchful of Kabuto, he had a bad feeling about that guy ever since he met Kabuto. He then noticed that there was still no sign of team 8 and sighed sadly.

'_I guess Hinata-chan's team couldn't pass the test. But still two hours are left, there might be some hope'_, thought Naruto optimistically. One hour went by and Naruto began to lose hope when suddenly, he heard some rustle outside of the arena.

"C'mon guys! I knew we'd pass, right Akamaru?", asked an ecstatic Kiba followed by a bark of approval from Akamaru while Naruto smirked as he definitely knew that voice.

'_Looks like they passed the test eh?'_, he thought but was brought out of his musings when he heard an all too familiar soft & an angelic voice.

"W-Wait for us Kiba!", he heard the muffled yell of Hinata.

"I'm telling you Hinata, we are probably the first team...to pass...the ...exam", choked Kiba mid-sentence when he saw a total of six genin squads staring at him in amusement. Meanwhile, Naruto sighed, shaking his head in amusement, "What an idiot", he muttered while chuckling lightly to himself.

"Dobe, what are you laughing about?", demanded the Uchiha with his patented scowl while Sakura frowned at Sasuke's behaviour. She had been constantly observing his behaviour for the past three days and found that Sasuke was the reason for most of their fights. Sakura's admiration for Sasuke was constantly being degraded as she watched him for the first time with a 'sane' person's perspective. Progressively, she stopped taking Sasuke's side, unlike previously. She still cared for him and thought that maybe the curse seal was affecting him, but sometimes he just got on her nerves.

"What? Do I have to ask for your permission Uchiha-sama?", asked Naruto sarcastically with a roll of his eyes while Sasuke narrowed his eyes in anger. But before he could make his 'emo' remark, Sakura stepped between them.

"Please Sasuke-kun, all the teams are watching. This exam is about teamwork remember? If we're going to have conflicts in our team, then how can we become chunins?", she said using her smart brain as she knew he would stop at the prospect of advancing in ninja ranks and gain more power while Naruto was satisfied with Sakura's interruption, he didn't want to fight now as they would get disqualified.

"Hn! You better stay out of my way loser", grunted Sasuke as he went to the wall, leaned against it and started brooding, probably making devious strategies and plans on how to defeat his brother while Sakura sighed in relief.

"Thanks Sakura", whispered Naruto while she nodded with a smile. Meanwhile, all the teams were watching this show in amusement, they couldn't fathom that how a team like that could've passed the second exams but team 10 knew all too well. Shikamaru muttered 'troublesome' at Sasuke's behaviour while Chouji sighed at their antics.

'_How could I ever have felt something for an idiot like him'_, thought Ino with a frown as she watched Sasuke.

"What a bunch of losers", said Kankurou wih a confident smirk while Temari was busy blushing when she saw Naruto again.

'_Mother wants your blood Uchiha'_, thought Gaara with a psychotic grin leading to a nervous Kankurou and Temari stepping away from him.

Meanwhile, Zaku was busy glaring at the Uchiha, his eyes seeing only one thing- REVENGE! Kin had joined her 'so called team' while Dosu was constantly glaring at her. Neji had an arrogant smirk on his face, Tenten was busy sharpening her kunai while Lee was doing one hand vertical push-ups, all the while yelling about his youth crap.

Kabuto was also keeping a close eye on Naruto, he could feel that Naruto's power had somehow increased drastically during the second exam. On the other hand, Hinata & Shino had just reached the entrance where a dumbfounded Kiba was standing. However, Shino & Hinata weren't surprised at all to see the six passing teams, they had already predicted this as they did completed the exam just before the time limit.

They became scanning the teams & as expected Hinata became ecstatic when she spotted team 7, but was confused when she didn't see any orange.

'_Where is Naruto-kun?'_, she thought when she didn't see him anywhere in the arena. However she did found someone she hadn't seen before, who was wearing a white cape with his back towards her, who she dismissed as a possible Yamanaka proctor because of his blonde hair, his blonde hair made her suspicious but she just ignored it. She also noticed that Sakura was talking to Sasuke about something before he went towards the wall. Worried about Naruto, she approached team 7, Sakura to be specific.

She timidly poked Sakura on her shoulder, "Umm Sakura-san?", asked Hinata while Sakura turned towards her.

"Oh, Hinata. Congratulations on passing the second exam", she said cheerfully while Naruto was busy in his own thoughts, so he didn't notice that Hinata was standing besides him, neither did Hinata as she was worried about Naruto.

"Th-Thanks, but d-do you know w-where Naruto-kun is?", asked Hinata, wondering where her favourite blonde is.

* * *

><p><strong>Yes, I know I know! I promised that preliminaries would start in this chapter and you can flame all you want. Really sorry, but I just got caught in other things which I thought to be necessary, mainly for character developement &amp; all. But next time, they'll start, believe it! Aside from that, please review. If you didn't like this chapter, just tell me so and don't hesitate.<strong>

**So see you next time, Ja Ne!**


	8. The Preliminaries Begin

**Hey guys, so here's the eighth chapter you all have been waiting for. First of all, thanks for all reviews and feedback you have given me until now.**

**As many of you have complained, I know that I went way too fast with relationships early on in the fic and I'm still trying to progress Naruto's relationships with other girls more realistically. As promised, the preliminaries start in this chapter, but a bit later in this chapter, mainly because I had to write the reactions of fellow genins as well as the jounins and also about Naruto meeting Hinata. But enough of that, let's start the chapter. This is by far the longest of all the chapters. Enjoy!-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-8-The Preliminaries Begin!<strong>

* * *

><p>"D-Do you know w-where Naruto-kun is?", she asked timidly while Sakura blinked in confusion.<p>

"What do you mean? He's standing right...", she trailed off when she realised that Hinata hadn't seen the new Naruto before inwardly grinning evilly. Sakura slunged her arm over Hinata's shoulder with a grin that would scare even the greatest prankmaster.

"Say Hinata..., do you know that Naruto told me... that he liked you?", she said dramatically while Hinata's face went extremely red.

"R-Really?", she asked with a tinge of hope, barely able to contain her excitement if what she heard was true.

"Yeeeaah! If you don't believe me, then just ask him yourself", said Sakura with an evil glint in her eyes while Hinata again blushed scarlet red.

"B-But..", she stuttered while Sakura poked her forehead.

"Oh sheesh! C'mon Hinata, everyone knows of your crush on Naruto and if you don't act soon, someone else is gonna claim him. For instance, Naruto saved that girl from sound team in the forest of death and she too has a thing for him", said Sakura while pointing at Kin who Hinata noticed that she was occasionally stealing glances at Naruto while blushing.

'_No, no way am I gonna lose Naruto-kun after all these years'_, she thought with desperation while a determined look bloomed on her face.

"W-Where is he Sakura-san?", she asked calmly while Sakura just grinned at her from ear to ear.

"Why he's right behind you Hinata", she said while pointing behind her whereas Naruto was still spaced out about something.

Hinata whipped her head lightning fast to see the same one she considered as a proctor, she could immediately feel blood rushing to her face at astounding rates and pinched her nose to prevent a possible bloodloss, but the pressure was too great and was propelled back due to a huge nosebleed almost taking Sakura with her. She barely missed Sakura but was on a collision course with Sasuke who was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, trying to concentrate on his brooding.

WHAM!

She collided with Sasuke, and accidently elbowed him in the forbidden zone leading to his eyes popping out of his sockets (Slow Motion). He threw some saliva and thankfully for Hinata cushioned her impact before he was immediately on his knees writhing in extreme pain, rolling around helplessly just to get rid of this torture.

"AAAHH! My...my...", he couldn't say anything coherent but just roll on the ground with a pained expression on his face. He could almost see an image of a laughing Itachi hovering over his head while saying-'I told you foolish little brother, you're dick will always be weak'.

"Sasuke-kun!", yelled Sakura as she ran to help him, but had to stop herself from falling into fits of laughter while others didn't bothered to restrain themselves.

"HAHAHAHA! Oh man...hehehe... this is great...hehehe... the Uchiha's production raw material's busted!", said Kankuro who was laughing his ass off while Temari too was trying to control herself and was barely succeeding at it. Meanwhile, Kiba unconsciously closed his thighs when he imagined the impact.

"Oh man...that must've hurt", he said with a pained expression as if imagining Sasuke's plight while Shino was... well Shino.

"GREAT SHOT!", yelled Kin & Temari simultaneously, they watched each other awkwardly before grinning to each other followed by a thumbs up. Meanwhile Zaku just watched the Uchiha's condition with a proud smirk.

'_That's what you get for messing with me Uchiha_', he thought while everyone else (Yeah, even Gaara, he too understands the pain of being hit there) could only express their thoughts in one word-"Ouch".

'_Mother pities you Uchiha'_, thought the future Kazekage.

Meanwhile, Naruto just got out of his thoughts to see a starry eyed Hinata with a huge blush on her face and a rolling Sasuke on the floor with Sakura trying to help him. Seeing Hinata's blush and Sasuke's condition, he immediately understood what happened.

'_I guess she noticed my changes, earlier she used to stutter in my presence but now..'_, he thought with a sigh before walking up to Hinata. But he was extremely happy to see her, last time he checked, she was being impaled by Itachi's blade.

"Oi Hinata-chan, are you alright?", he asked with a concerned expression while her eyes slowly fluttered open to see Naruto bent in front of her.

"N-N-Naruto-k-kun..", she stuttered before her world began to spin while Naruto too noticed her swaying. He sighed before putting his hand on her forehead and started to apply his chakra on her forehead. Immediately, she stopped swaying and noticed, just like Kin the strange effects of his chakra.

"W-What are you d-doing N-Naruto-kun?", she asked with a blush but noticed that she was not fainting this close to him, which was a miracle in itself while Naruto's eyes hardened.

'_I can't take it anymore, I have to ask her. It's now or never!'_, he thought before nodding to himself inwardly.

"Hinata-chan, do you hate me like all the villagers?", he asked with a frown while Hinata's eyes widened.

"Ofcourse not!", she said frantically.

"Then are you afraid of me?", he asked with his piercing gaze while Hinata would've just lost herself in those beautiful blue orbs if not for the seriousness of the situation.

"W-Why are y-you asking me this N-Naruto-kun? There's no w-way I'll be ever a-afraid of you", she said with a sad expression while all others watched this strange scene curiously.

"Then why do you stutter in front of me, why faint, why avoid me? If that's not fear then what it is? What makes you different from the rest of villagers and shinobi populace then? If you like me, then why never approach me?", he asked while her eyes widened in surprise.

"N-Naruto-kun...", she trailed while avoiding his gaze, "Eye contact Hinata!", he said firmly while she immediately jerked her head to look into his eyes, eyes which were usually bright were filled with loneliness and pain.

"I know you liked me right from the start, I know you followed me, I am not an idiot Hinata. I know you secretly cheered for me in the academy, secretly prayed for me, but why...why didn't you ever approach me, why didn't you try to atleast be my friends when I was lonely, when I sat lonely by the swing. If I'm the one you like, shouldn't I be a source of comfort for you, shouldn't you be comfortable around me, shouldn't you be just yourself around me & forget all of your problems in the world", he said with an emotionless face, he refused to cry in front of everyone, but he had to know the answer, he was fed up of this game of cat & mouse while tears started to well up in Hinata's eyes at hearing the pain in his eyes.

Meanwhile Kin, Sakura, Temari & Ino were also sad at hearing him, but Ino was hit the hardest among them by his pained confession.

'_If only I wouldn't have behaved like an ass back then, for what it's worth...I'm sorry Naruto. But I promise that I'll make it up for you'_, thought Ino while Shikamaru put a comforting hand on her. He too was a bit sad that he didn't approach Naruto again, although they were friends early in the academy but eventually only him & Chouji remained friends.

Naruto looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder to see Kiba standing there with a frown on his face.

"Naruto, I don't know what happened to you buddy", he said while gesturing to Naruto's appearance, "but you shouldn't create a scene here", before Naruto glared at him.

"Kiba... you don't have any idea what has happened in the past few days of my godforsaken life, but I'm in a foul mood and I want some .now!", he growled while Shino just remained passive, standing by the side of Kiba, ready to defend Hinata if something happens.

"Naruto...I understand that you were lonely, I atleast had Akamaru by my side in times of trouble, but you have to understand that life for Hinata too was not easy. Her father...", he trailed not wanting to reveal anything more in front of the contestants while Naruto just sighed frustratingly.

"**Hyouton: Hyou Kekkai: Hyourou Doumu **(Ice Release: Ice Barrier: Ice Dome Prison)", whispered Naruto after going through a couple of handseals (both hands) and slammed them on the floor, the effects of which were an ice dome getting created around him & team 8. Just as the dome was about to complete, he created a shadow clone outside it and signalled him to keep watch while the clone nodded at him.

Team 8's eyes widened after seeing something which should be impossible for a genin, "What did you...", trailed Kiba in amazement as he saw that they were completely surrounded by this igloo-like structure while Shino's eyebrows could be seen above his glasses, Hinata didn't say anything but she was just as gobsmacked, however a large part of her was still saddened by Naruto's claims, she knew what he said was true but she too had her own reasons.

"Don't worry, this is completely harmless and also acts as a soundproof barrier, now we can talk without caring about anyone", said Naruto before he again touched Hinata's forehead and started applying his chakra.

Meanwhile, all the genins were astounded at what they had just witnessed except Gaara who was grinning like a psycho maniac and Sakura who had already saw Naruto using ice manipulation. Sasuke too had an amazed look on his face, although he was still in pain from the blow.

'_This power... why don't I have this much strength. No matter how hard I train, why ... why can't I get stronger. I feel like I'm getting nowhere. Naruto...how can you be so strong? You were supposed to be the deadlast and I was the rookie of the year. I... I will get this power no matter what I have to do'_, he thought while clenching his fists and gritting his teeth. Sakura was looking at him with worry, she knew he would be overwhelmed at the display of Naruto's skill and was worried about Sasuke's reaction ever since the forest of death, and now her fears were coming true.

'_Naruto, how strong are you really are? Just what... the heck happened in the forest?'_, thought team 10 while Neji had a frown on his face, meanwhile Tenten & Lee had somewhat akin to admiration in their eyes.

"YOSH, NARUTO-KUN'S FLAMES OF YOUTH SHINE BRIGHTLY!", Lee yelled before pumping his fist in air while all the genins except team 9 flinched at his loud volume, Kabuto having a deep frown on his face.

'_He could be a problem later in our plans, I have to report to Orochimaru-sama about this unexpected developement'_, he thought while adjusting his glasses.

"That was so cool!", exclaimed Kin with shining stars in her eyes while Zaku & Dosu wanted to, but couldn't refuse her claim, it was indeed...cool, they thought begrudgingly.

"No one touches this dome or disturbs boss right now", said the clone authoritatively while glaring especially at Sasuke, the others wanted to say something but sensing his foul mood didn't bother to.

* * *

><p><strong>Ice Dome<strong>

* * *

><p>"Alright, about your father, I know everything as to how he treated you", he said to Hinata whose eyes widened in shock, "B-But how?", she asked.<p>

"It doesn't matter right now, you still haven't answered my questions Hinata. I wouldn't have, like killed you for just saying a word to me back then", said Naruto while Hinata bowed her head down, not wanting to tell about her insecurities, not wanting to look weak in front of him.

'_But... I may not get this opportunity in the future. Naruto-kun has taken the step now, I can't...back down now...it's now or never'_, she thought before taking a deep breath while Kiba & Shino remained quiet, they knew how much Naruto meant to her, they were constantly trying to persuade her to talk to him. And now they dare not interrupt them.

"One f-failure after another...every time I tried to s-stand... an even heavier weight was put on my shoulders keeping me to the s-surface", she said while her bangs covered her eyes. Kiba's & Shino's eyes widened at how less she stuttered, even in front of Naruto while Naruto just kept listening to her.

"After the death of my m-mother and m-my uncle, my f-father constantly put...me under harsh t-training schedules, he never encouraged me for a-anything but rather spat on me for even s-smallest of mistakes. G-Gentle fist style of our clan just didn't suit me, but he n-never bothered to understand. I-It's unfair...from the day I was born... I was chosen to be the heiress, the word which I didn't even know the meaning of then, a heavy burden was put on me, ...lots of expectations from me. Th-The elders constantly looked down on m-me because they... wanted a male heir. The s-style suited my sister, so she was proficient in it and c-constantly... beat me in our spars and ...I w-was forced in the shadow of my s-sister's light", tears started falling from her eyes and onto her lap. Naruto's heart ached at seeing her in such condition, and although he knew about the way she was treated, he had to know how she felt about all of this.

"Hinata...", whispered Kiba while clenching his fists, damn her clan!

"Constant harsh b-beatings, c-constant failures, constant cold looks and glares from my f-father, sister & my c-cousin degraded my self-confidence, self-esteem so much that I began to d-doubt if I could ever do anything right. In the a-academy, I tried so many times to a-approach you...but every time I would see the disappointed face of m-my father...my insecurities holding me b-back, me having thoughts like...l-like...", she bit her bottom lip to stop herself from crying, she couldn't break down in front of him. But when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder, she looked up to see Naruto smiling warmly at her while tears started flowing down his face, his warm and loving eyes urging her to let it all out.

That pushed her over the cliff and she threw herself at him, Naruto was surprised as well as Kiba and Shino, it was a miracle that she hadn't fainted until then, but this...

Hinata hugged Naruto tightly while she sobbed uncontrollably in his chest, he encircled his arms around her petite figure and held her to him.

"I..I w-was too a-afraid to a-approach you, I.. I still am. W-What if y-you d-don't like me, w-what if y-you th-think of m-me as a w-weak person just l-like my father. I can't t-take y-your r-rejection, e-even thinking...about it makes m-me...w-want to cry, b-besides you w-were always i-interested in S-Sakura-san, s-so th-that fact t-too pushed ...me back. I-I'm sorry N-Naruto-kun, but I-I'm just n-not c-confident like y-you", she stuttered in his chest while sobbing loudly whereas Naruto just rubbed her silky hair delicately. Kiba had tears in his eyes at seeing the condition of his sister-like figure and was clenching his fists at not being able to do anything for her, while you could see streams of tears below Shino's glasses, on his cheeks.

"Ne Hinata-chan...there's nothing wrong in crying. You can let it all out and no matter what happens, I would never consider you a weak person. A spark is all you need to awake the sleeping fire in you. I know you are a strong person, so whatever happens...", he paused as he lifted her head by her chin and grinned his famous grin," Don't ever give up! And remember that I would never leave you", he said while Hinata gave a small teary eyed smile. Kiba had a smirk on his face while Shino had an almost unnoticeable smile on his face before they wiped their tears.

Hinata wiped her tears and determination took birth in her eyes before she stood up and pointed her thumb at her hitai-ate, "A-And I promise on my l-leaf hitai-ate, that I w-would... NEVER leave your s-side Naruto-kun", she said while Naruto could see that she was desperately trying to stop her stuttering, he knew that her father had severely damaged her self-esteem, but he also knew that with time, her stuttering would stop.

"Ja, don't worry Hinata, we too are with you. After all what are teammates for, right Shino?", said Kiba before patting Shino's back. "Indeed", said the bug user with conviction.

"Th-Thanks Kiba, Shino", she said with a small smile before Naruto put a hand on her shoulder at which she blushed, and he was a bit surprised that she didn't faint.

"Great Hinata-chan, you didn't faint", he said with a goofy smile leading to her blush getting deepened at the compliment as well as at the '-chan' part while Kiba smacked his forehead," What an idiot", he muttered to himself.

"Now, seeing as you're my friends and comrades, I just wanted to tell you guys that the preliminaries would start in a couple of minutes", he said offhandedly while Kiba just blinked before bursting.

"WHAT!", he exclaimed while Hinata & Shino watched Naruto with confusion, albeit a blushing Hinata as she was still not used to this handsome Naruto.

"The reason will be explained by the proctors or by the Hokage himself, just wanted to tell you so that you can atleast mentally prepare yourself", he said with his hands in his pockets.

"But we still haven't recovered from our forest voyage! This is unfair!", yelled Kiba while Naruto frowned at his outburst.

"Tell me, did Kurenai-sensei ever told you that life of a shinobi is fair? Was it fair for Hinata-chan when her father made her fight her sister even when she was tired from your team missions and practice sessions? Was it fair for me when the academy teachers... ", trailed Naruto before muttering "Never mind" to himself while Kiba bowed his head, he knew that a shinobi's life was out of the boundaries of fair & unfair, it was the first line they read in their academy textbooks while Shino nodded with Naruto. Meanwhile Hinata had noticed Naruto's slipup and decided to ask him later about it.

"Besides it was your fault that you came so late, but still you're not the only ones who arrived just now. Shikamaru's team and the sound team came just before you", he said while Kiba nodded a bit hesitantly

"No problem, Akamaru and I can beat anybody here", said Kiba confidently while Naruto smirked at him.

"Watch it dogboy, pray that you don't have to fight me", said Naruto jokingly while Kiba laughed.

"Bring it on loser!", said the Inuzuka before Naruto turned to Hinata.

"Do your best Hinata-chan. I don't care if you win or lose, just give it your all", said Naruto with a thumbs up while Hinata nodded with determination.

'_I will not disappoint you Naruto-kun'_, she thought before she remembered to ask him something which was on her mind since she saw him.

"B-But what happened to y-your appearance Naruto-kun? And how do you know e-elemental nature m-manipulation?", she asked while Kiba & Shino too were curious about the answer.

"It's an S-rank secret, you have to ask the Hokage about it", he said like a car on an automatic transmission, he was getting tired of repeating that line after all.

"Oh please, do you think we're foolish. How can anything related to you be an S-rank secret", said Kiba while Hinata frowned at him.

"Believe what you want to, but I'm not gonna tell you", said Naruto while glaring at Kiba before he blinked as the clone outside had dispelled itself and the memories of the Hokage, jounins and some people he hadn't seen before arriving via shunshin in the arena came to him.

"Jiji has arrived, alright guys, let's go and kick some genin ass", he said before forming the snake seal resulting in cracks beginning to form on the dome before it collapsed completely for them to see everyone's wide eyes except the Hokage. You could see the blushing faces of almost every female there whether it be genin, chunin, jounin or a kage i.e. Mei, Samui, Karui, Yugito, Hana, Yugao, Temari, Kin and some other female jounins who Naruto didn't know.

On the other hand Naruto was fairly pleased to see the gobsmacked faces of the one's who had just arrived. He could see Kurenai smiling lovingly at him from behind the Hokage and that psycho proctor smiling seductively at him, actually all the female were giving him those strange seductive looks making him extremely nervous & uncomfortable. He started scanning all of them, most of them he knew because of his pranks. Because of the chunin exams, most of the jounins were deprived of any missions for the village's security and hence almost all of them were present except some few ones.

'_Hmm, most of them I know...HOLY SHIT'_, thought a blushing Naruto.

Blood started to crawl to his face when he saw Hana & Yugao, both of whom were grinning at him. If two beautiful women like them would grin at you, well let's just say even Sasuke 'might' melt.

His blush deepened when he set his gaze on Mei, Samui & Yugito, especially Mei's flirtious smile. His mind was getting into overdrive at the attention of this many beautiful women, he'd rather fight Orochimaru again then be in this position. Meanwhile Kiba was grinning lecherously when he noticed them while he wiped blood off his nose, Shino just stood impassively while Hinata was fidgeting nervously under the stares of possibly every jounin of the village. She hesitantly lifted her head to see Kurenai smiling proudly at them lifting her confidence even more after her talk with Naruto.

Meanwhile, the other genins were staring between them and the Hokage, trying to decipher the situation. But most all, they were still astonished over the ice dome that Naruto had created.

"Um, hehe... sorry for the wait, we were... discussing something private...away from prying ears", said a nervous Naruto apologetically, not sure what to say in this situation.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback- Outside the Ice Dome<strong>

* * *

><p>Several minutes had passed after Naruto had created the dome, while the clone was still keeping watch for the proctors and was talking with Kin &amp; Temari about something. Ino wanted to join in the conversation but she knew now was not the time as it would just create a scene here. Sasuke was better than before, but that area was still sore for him while Sakura was concerned for him.<p>

"That was awesome Naruto-kun! You must have trained hard to do control a rare element like ice like that", complimented Kin while the clone blushed and was grinning while rubbing of the back his head.

"Thanks I guess", he replied, " But how can you do ice manipulation, not even jounins are capable of such a feat. Do you have a bloodline?", asked Temari sceptically while the clone gulped nervously.

'_Why did boss leave me here? I'd rather be inside the dome than try to deflect these questions'_, he whined.

"Um never mind that, you two don't know each other right? So let me introduce you. Kin-chan, this is Temari and Temari, this is Kin-chan", he introduced them while they greeted each other politely and shook hands with each other.

Suddenly, several loud poofs were heard while the arena was filled with smoke and a booming voice reverberated from the smoke.

"Alright maggots, congratulations on passing the second exams", the smoke cleared for the genins to see a brightly grinning Anko Mitarashi, behind whom were almost all the jounins of Konoha. You could see Kakashi reading his smut novel, a smoking Asuma, a cold looking Kurenai justifying her title of ice queen and Gai who was grinning like an idiot, Baki who was the jounin sensei of Gaara's team, the sound team's sensei (Orochimaru) and other Konoha jounins who hadn't taken any teams and specialised in other areas.

But Anko's face along with every newly arrived one's face turned into that of surprise when they saw a human sized ice structure in the middle of the arena with a blue eyed, whisker mark'ed', white cape wearing blonde standing on it. Every jounin except the ice queens had only one thought running through their minds-_'Yondaime?' _while the female jounins were blushing, but Anko quickly cut them off before anyone could say anything.

'_Sensei?'_, thought Kakashi in shock.

"What is this? As far as I know, there's no ice user in Konoha and I fairly doubt any of you could do this", said Anko in a demanding tone while the clone raised his hand.

"Actually... I created this", he said with a grin leading to a pink tint on the female jounins including the ice queens while Kakashi became a bit suspicious at hearing that voice before. He had heard that voice before, but it wasn't that of his sensei. Then his eyes widened in shock when he saw the whisker marks resulting in him dropping his book.

'_Naruto?'_, he thought while getting surprised looks from his fellow jounins, as far as they knew, he had never dropped his book even at the most shocking facts.

"Are you kidding me brat, there's no way in hell you could know chakra nature manipulation, let alone creating an element as rare as ice", said a jounin .

'_What exactly did Rinnegan do for him?'_, thought the ice queens simultaneously with wide eyed looks on their faces. They were already thrown for the loop when Kurenai told them that he knew nature manipulation for water and lightning element, but this...this was absolutely absurd! Even Sharingan didn't grant you that much.

"Hokage-sama will explain when he gets here", said the clone as he awkwardly used the term '-sama'. He was not used to this formality crap, but in front of so many jounins he had to be careful.

Before anyone could say anything, Hiruzen, Mei along with her bodyguards and A along with Yugito, Bee & his team arrived via leaf, water & lightning shunshin. They too, sported similar reactions like the jounins while Hiruzen too was surprised, he wasn't expecting Naruto to be able to use a sub-element so early even with the shadow clone training. Hiruzen was also a bit nervous of Naruto's reaction as Kurenai had told him, rather while smiling evilly that Naruto knew about him keeping her away from him.

"Hokage-sama, would you kindly explain these people about how can I use ice manipulation and about my changes. I'm tired of saying the same thing over and over again", said the clone while glaring at Hiruzen while the newly arrived ones looked at him with amazement (except Hiruzen). Meanwhile, Yugito, Samui, Karui and Mei were blushing profusely before Mei quickly composed herself.

'_What a handsome man, I think it would be fun to flirt with him'_, thought Mei with a smile.

'_Now that's what you call cool', _thought Samui while retaining her emotionless look.

'_What a fine specimen, kitten you have to claim him!', _purred Nibi in Yugito's head while sending mental images of Yugito & Naruto doing something which Jiraiya would be proud of.

'_SHUT UP NIBI!'_, she thought while blushing furiously.

"Ah yes, Raikage-dono, Mizukage-dono, this is Uzumaki Naruto", said the Hokage gaining wide eyed looks from everyone except the genins and the ice queens. Most of the shinobi populace in the village didn't hate Naruto for what he carried, but still remained indifferent to him and held no grudges against him, but they were still surprised that this was the same shrimp prankmaster who wore a kill me orange jumpsuit.

'_Naruto-kun, you really intrigue me to no end. It would be interesting to see what else has changed about you'_, thought Orochimaru while licking his lips like the snake freak he was.

'_This...is the dead last they were talking about?'_, thought Mei, Karui & Samui simultaneously not believing their eyes, how can a genin capable of feat as rare as elemental manipulation and sub-element at that, be called a dead last.

"I know what all of you are thinking, but I will explain later in my office, so no questions for now. And Naruto... care to tell us why do you have this... created here?", asked Hiruzen while pointing to the ice dome.

"Sorry for the disturbance Hokage-sama, boss was just discussing something with team 8 in privacy. I'll immediately inform him", said the clone, glancing at Kurenai who was looking at him in confusion while he nodded at her assuringly before dispelling himself.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback End<strong>

* * *

><p>"Alright, we have wasted enough time. Anko, if you will", said Hiruzen while signalling Anko to go ahead before she nodded and stepped in front.<p>

"Alright! I want all of you in columns of your respective teams in a minute!", she said authoritatively before the genins quickly started forming lines adjacent to each other.

"Thank you Anko, now first of all, I want to congratulate everyone of you for passing the second part of chunin exams.", continued Hiruzen before introducing the genins to the Raikage and Mizukage. After that he started giving his speech before explaining about the preliminaries leading to an uproar by some teams. He quickly explained about the excessive number of teams passing the second exam and about the third exam and BLAH BLAH BLAH, which Naruto didn't pay attention to.

"Now that I have explained everything, if the proctor for the preliminaries would please step ahead and explain the rules", said Hiruzen as Gekko Hayate stepped forward while typically chewing on his senbon.

"Alright, before I explain the rules if anybody wants to back down he can do now or else there's no turning back", he said before Kabuto raised his hand according to the plan and was led outside of the arena while Naruto watched him suspiciously, also ignoring Sasuke who had been constantly glaring at him for stealing the attention from him. When no one else raised their hands, he continued.

"The matches would be triple threats, i.e. three contestants would take part in each match and would be pitied against each other", he said before Temari interrupted him.

"Hey, I thought the matches were supposed to be one on one battles", she complained while Gekko sighed.

"Being a chunin, doesn't mean you would always get one on one matches on the field. Sometimes you would have to handle more than one opponents during missions. But still, it doesn't mean you would be out of the preliminaries if you lose. Likewise, your win too doesn't guarantee a place in the finals. In a match, all the contestants can advance to the finals or none at all, it all depends on your skills, Hokage-sama, Mizukage-sama and Raikage-sama here would be the judge of that", he said while coughing before continuing, "The match can be won by forfeit, or if your opponent is not able to fight or if your opponent is killed. Beware that if you advance to the finals, you'll most likely make chunins as in the finals too, the judges would be same. There you most likely have to showcase your skills to the foreign merchants and nobles then. Now are there any questions?", he said while none raised their hands. Except a few all the genins were nervous, they had almost no experience in fighting multiple opponents while Naruto was a bit excited at the rules.

'_I guess I can finally test my skills in these preliminaries'_, he thought with a smirk while clenching his fists in excitement. Sasuke too smirked cockily at Naruto from behind, _'Just you wait dobe, I'll show you that I'm much better than you'_, he thought while Sakura had a determined look in her eyes along with Hinata.

"Alright, the names of contestants of who would be fighting the first match would flash on the screen while the rest of you, with your jounin sensei will go upwards on railing. Also the names would be chosen completely at random, so you may have to fight your own teammate, so prepare yourself for just about anything", explained Hayate before the names started flashing on the screen at random.

'HYUUGA NEJI vs AKIMICHI CHOUJI vs INUZUKA KIBA', the names flashed on the screen one by one leading to a smirking Neji, a whining Chouji, an excited Kiba but at the same time frustrated a bit because he was still tired from the second exam. Meanwhile, all the other genins went upstairs with their respective sensei's. Kakashi was still looking at Naruto gobsmacked wondering just what the hell happened in the forest. When they reached upstairs, he put his hand on Naruto's shoulder, who turned towards him.

"Naruto...what happened?", he asked in a barely audible whisper before glancing at Sakura who was shaking her head in denial that she didn't know anything while Naruto just pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, why can't everybody stop asking questions just for once.

"Kakashi-sensei, the only thing that I can tell you now is that Orochimaru attacked us in the forest", he said while glancing towards Sasuke before Kakashi's eyes widened in surprise. Orochimaru? What could he want from his team, then he followed Naruto's gaze towards Sasuke and sighed. Ofcourse, he should have known, the Sharingan.

"I have no idea how you guys survived, but I'm glad you did. Also, I suppose Sasuke has a curse mark", whispered Kakashi while Naruto nodded at him.

"Listen sensei, I know you have a lot of questions. But I'm tired and want nothing more than for this day to end. I know you helped me a lot in my youki control training, but please understand me. Jiji will explain everything to you when the time comes, but for now can you please drop these topic? I'm gonna showcase some abilities that'll leave you dry for answers, but can you just swallow everything today sensei?", he said in a pleading tone, he was emotionally and mentally drained. These past few days were like a rollercoaster ride from him, he himself needed some time to think while Kakashi nodded in understanding, he could see that his student was emotionally a raging maelstrom right now and needed some time to get used to this. He would give him some space for now, but was eager as to what abilities he was talking about.

"Alright, are you three ready?", asked Hayate while Neji nodded, activating his Byakugan while settling into his gentle fist form. Chouji too nodded, albeit a lot hesitantly while Kiba immediately ate a foodpill to restore his chakra. Meanwhile Raikage grinned in anticipation of the battle.

"Hm, it's been a while since I've seen a Hyuuga, Akimichi & a Inuzuka in action, this should be good", he said while Mei nodded with him.

"You ready Akamaru?", he asked his partner who barked with him before he nodded with the proctor. Hayate raised his hand before yelling 'Hajime!' and jumped out of the centre to the side.

"I'm warning you guys, you should just give up or suffer a shameful defeat by my hands", said Neji cockily while Kiba growled at him and Chouji became even more nervous.

"I'm not one to go down without a fight, no matter what I'll just give my best", he said before crouching on all fours while Chouji too became determined at Kiba's declaration and nodded with him. Kiba and Chouji looked towards each other before nodding while Neji narrowed his eyes at them. Immediately Kiba dashed towards Neji at a higher speed than a genin should possess, Neji was startled by his speed and agility but that was to be expected of an Inuzuka, and besides he was used to sparring with Lee who possessed much greater speed than Kiba.

Kiba went for a midsection palm thrust as Neji avoided it with grace before going for a palm strike towards Kiba's shoulder but became unsettled by his smirk.

'_He's planning something'_, thought Neji before his eyes widened when he heard Chouji yell.

"**Bubun Baika no Jutsu **(Partial Multi Size Technique)"

'_Shit, I forgot the fat one. That ingrate, he hid himself behind the Inuzuka deliberately so his chakra network was hidden from me behind the Inuzuka's. These losers just might be a bit of challenge for me after all'_, he thought before using a chakra enhanced jump to dodge the rolling Chouji who was now like an air balloon and was coming at him at high speeds. Upon missing him Chouji just collided with the wall, his enlarged body getting stuck in the crater. Neji, using his chakra on his feet was standing on the ceiling right now before he saw the Inuzuka and his dog coming at him with his Byakugan, rotating at high speeds.

"**Gatsuuga **(Dual Piercing Fang)", yelled Kiba, having creating the man beast clone before initiating his attack when Neji was in midair.

'_They're both targeting me, I've to get rid of one of them quickly'_, thought Neji while barely avoiding Kiba's attack before rushing towards Chouji, who was still dazed from the impact and was now in his normal size to escape the crater. Upon reaching him Neji unleashed a flurry of palm strikes , not targeting any vital organs but doing enough damage that he would be out of the match. Chouji grunted in pain, he felt like a thousand needles had pierced his body and that he didn't have any chakra left before falling to his knees and fell face first on the floor.

Kiba and his clone (Akamaru) skidded to a halt from their attack before glaring at Neji who was smirking at him.

'_That bastard, he used that opening to get rid of Chouji. I don't think I can go on anymore, I'm very tired and that last Gatsuuga took everything out of me'_, he thought before noticing Neji bending into a strange stance. Meanwhile one of the Kiba's fell on his knees due to exhaustion while panting.

'_They both have the same amount of chakra flowing through their networks, but the standing one must be the real Inuzuka'_, thought Neji before smirking. This match was now over.

"I have no intention of prolonging this match any further. You're in the field of my divination", said Neji seriously while Tenten's eyes widened.

"He's using that attack already!", she exclaimed in surprise while Gai sighed at Neji, sometimes he was too stubborn and arrogant for his own good. They had already discussed that they wouldn't showcase their main attacks before the finals, but apparently Neji deemed it fit ignore them.

"**Hakke****Rokujuuyonshou**(EightDivinationSigns: Sixty**-**FourPalms)", he yelled before dashing towards Kiba at amazing speeds and started delivering flurry of palm strikes with accuracy. The strikes were blur to the genins while everyone including Hinata was surprised that he could use such a technique at such a young age.

"Thirty Two palms", he said in continuation with his attack after delivering the two, four, eight & sixteen strikes, but before he could finish the last set of thirty two strikes, he was given a shattering punch to the side of his head, courtesy of the clone or was it Kiba, before Neji was sent flying back before colliding with the wall resulting in him spitting some blood.

Everyone saw a panting Kiba standing where Neji was a moment ago while the one who was attacked poofed back to show a critically injured Akamaru.

"Akamaru!", yelled Kiba while bending down to check on it. Akamaru's breathing was laboured and Kiba instantly knew that a vital organ of its body was struck during the attack.

"Proctor, call for medics, my partner's injured!", he yelled while checking for Akamaru's pulse.

"Sorry kid, as per the rules, since you both are treated as one contestant, so getting medical attention even for the dog means that you too forfeit the match. So either you have to forfeit the match or continue fighting and wait for the match to end", said Hayate apologetically.

"What! That's ridiculous!", exclaimed an infuriated Kiba.

"So what will you do Inuzuka?", Kiba turned his head to see Neji standing there while wiping the blood off his mouth and growled at him before turning to a whimpering Akamaru.

'_Shit! Guess this is it'_, he thought before nodding towards Hayate.

"Alright, I forfeit the match, just call for the medics quickly", said Kiba with frustration while Neji scoffed at him.

"Coward, why don't you just say you can't win against me? After all, once a loser, always a loser", said Neji before glancing at Hinata to make his point clear while Naruto glared at him.

"Winner: Hyuuga Neji", he said while medics came and carried Akamaru and Chouji on a stretcher.

'_That Hyuuga is really getting on my nerves right now'_, he thought while clenching the metal support of the railing, almost breaking it. Naruto was also satisfied with Kiba's decision to save Akamaru. After the talk with Naruto, Hinata was a bit more confident and was angry at Neji. She could tolerate him insulting her, but to openly insult her teammate wasn't something she was going to just choke down. It was time that she grew a backbone and reply him back.

'_I'll show you Neji-ni-san that I'm not as weak as you think'_, she thought while clenching her fists before Kurenai put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Although the Hyuuga is a genious when it comes to fighting, but he needs some attitude adjustment. Don't you agree Hokage-sama?", asked A while Hiruzen nodded with him before muttering about 'All Hyuugas needing attitude adjustment'.

"Let's give Chouji give a Barbeque treat shall we? That's the first time I've seen him fight seriously", said a smoking Asuma while Ino and Shikamaru nodded with him

"Man this is so troublesome, now I too have to give my best", muttered Shikamaru lazily before Ino hit him on the head.

"Jeez! You're such a lazy ass, can't you show determination once in a while for something, like Naruto", she said before immediately clamping her mouth with her hand and began to blush in embarrassment. Shikamaru and Asuma smirked at her from the corner of their eyes before Ino yanked Shikamaru with his collar.

"If you tell anyone about this, I swear I'll tell your mother about how you skipped classes during the academy", she said threateningly while Shikamaru paled at the mention of his mother and nodded fervently with her whereas Asuma just chuckled at their antics.

"Hn, that dog boy's such a loser. Just for his mutt, he forfeited the match", said Sasuke while shaking his head before Sakura frowned at him and Naruto glared at him. Kakashi put his hand on Naruto's shoulder to prevent him from starting a brawl right there.

'_I'm proud of you Kiba. Kaa-san would be happy that you put Akamaru before your own interests'_, thought Hana with a smile while Hinata gave Kiba her healing ointment.

"Alright, the names of the contestants of the second match will flash on the screen now", said Hayate before again names of the contestants flashed on the screen for everyone to see.

'SABAKU NO KANKUROU vs ABUMI ZAKU vs HYUUGA HINATA' .

* * *

><p><strong>So did you like the chapter? Sorry that this chapter included only one fight, but I just got lost in doing that NaruHina scene, I know it was not much but I tried my best. I know that this chapter was probably not that good as the previous chapters, but still please review and continue giving me some feedback as you have given me in the previous seven chapters. So see you next time! Ja Ne!<strong>


	9. The Byakugan Blooms!

**Hey guys! So here's the ninth chapter you've all been waiting for. Thanks for all the reviews in the eighth chapter. And YAY! This story has crossed its first milestone of 500 reviews, all because of you guys, so again thank you very much. Now I've got a number of things I wanna explain to you, so please read the author's note at the end of this chapter, it's IMPORTANT! And beware guys Kushina-hime is gonna enter in a couple of chapters, so brace yourselves. So, enjoy for now-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-9- The Byakugan Blooms!<strong>

* * *

><p>'SABAKU NO KANKUROU vs ABUMI ZAKU vs HYUUGA HINATA'<p>

Hinata narrowed her eyes while clenching her fists. This was it! There was no going back, she would prove herself to Naruto, to her sensei, to her father, sister and cousin and everyone else who thought that she could never amount to anything.

'_For you Naruto-kun, I will do this. I will not let your faith in me waver even a bit'_, she thought before flipping over the railing and landing graciously on the floor, much to the surprise of everyone who knew her except Naruto. Kurenai was surprised to see the fire in her eyes, those were the eyes of a true kunoichi, radiating confidence and wanting to prove herself, her existence. Meanwhile Neji was glaring at Hinata's back with hate.

"Whoa! Is that really our Hinata?", asked an astonished Kiba while Shino just adjusted his glasses, he too was surprised by her body language. They were expecting her to timidly twiddle her fingers and slowly walk down the stairs with nervous steps, although they knew her confidence was boosted by Naruto but this was still something they weren't used to. Meanwhile Kurenai was looking at Naruto in confusion and admiration in her eyes, he just possibly achieved what she had been trying to do for some years now, just what did he do in that dome. Although she knew that Hinata was probably doing this in the heat of the moment, but still even that was impossible before. She knew Hinata had hidden talent, suppressed by her father and her clan and confidence was the only thing she needed to become an accomplished kunoichi.

Zaku landed on the floor and smirked maliciously at Hinata, "Cocky bitch, aren't you Hyuuga?", he asked with a sneer while Kankurou too landed on the floor with a smirk.

"Why don't you forfeit girl, this tournament is for guys like us not for some weak Hyuuga heiress", he said while keeping his smirk on his painted face, wanting to unsettle her determination, he knew hit a spot with that last comment. He knew about her status as they were made to know about major clans of Konoha in detail for their Konoha invasion plan. Hinata narrowed her eyes at him while activating her Byakugan, glaring at him at the comment which only succeeded in steeling her determination before slipping into the gentle fist stance.

"Your loss bitch, but don't say that I didn't warn you", said Zaku while shrugging before Kankurou spoke.

"Hey pal, what do you say we team up and beat up the cocky Hyuuga", said Kankurou intimidately while Zaku nodded with a malevolent smile whereas Hinata just ignored them. Meanwhile Mei frowned at what they were planning to do, now inwardly she wanted nothing more than for the Hyuuga girl to beat their asses, how dare they underestimate the power of a kunoichi, a determined one at that.

"Hey! That's not fair, those guys are teaming against Hinata", said an angry Sakura while Naruto was watching them calmly, which surprised Kakashi to no end, as he was expecting Naruto to burst instead of Sakura.

"If she can't beat those two pathetic genins, then she doesn't deserve to be a kunoichi", said Sasuke with his patented scowl while Naruto & Sakura just ignored him.

"They're trying to intimidate Hinata into forfeiting the match so that they don't have to face any extra competition. The Hyuuga clan is renowned throughout the world for their gentle fist, so naturally they don't want to face her as even one blow from her would disrupt their flow of chakra making them almost defenceless, I'd say they're actually scared from her", said Naruto with an amused smirk while Kakashi's lone eye widened to that of saucers, was this really Naruto? The loud unpredictable knucklehead ninja who takes actions first before thinking, well he was justifying the unpredictable part. Sakura nodded with him whereas Sasuke 'Hn-ed' in response.

"HEY CLOWN! ARE YOU SCARED OF HER?", yelled Naruto out-of-nowhere before a tic mark grew on Kankurou's forehead who yelled back.

"IT'S WAR PAINT!", while Samui & Karui just sweatdropped.

'_That's one weird genin'_, both thought simultaneously as they stared at Kankurou in exasperation.

"OOOOH SORRY MAN! DIDN'T KNOW CLOWNS FOUGHT WARS", said Naruto with a goofy grin while almost everyone chuckled at that comment. Sakura couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing while slowly others joined in too, Kakashi was just chuckling to himself while Gai was shouting about Naruto's flames of youth shining brightly.

Kankurou gave a dirty look towards Hayate who was chuckling to himself while holding his senbon, well...so that he doesn't swallow it accidently. "What? The kid has a point you know", he said while chuckling. Whereas Mei was smiling amusingly at Naruto while Samui had a smirk on her face, typically thinking that it was a cool comment while Omoi was confused if he should suck on his lollipop anxiously or laugh, resulting in him laughing anxiously while sucking on his lollipop which was a strange & a hilarious scene to say the least. Yugito had a blush on her face, mainly due to the commentary of her sex-crazed bijuu while Hiruzen was chuckling to himself, shaking his head at Naruto antics, no matter how much he changed, he'll always be a prank master of the leaf capable of lighting the moods even in the most serious situations.

Anko had an excited grin on her face while she was eyeing Naruto with a seductive look whereas the rest of the ice queens watched Naruto with a dreamy sigh. Naruto saw Anko out of the corner of his eyes and shuddered at that look, but at the same time blushed at seeing her pretty face, that he had to admit, before turning his head to the other side to hide his blush.

'_Oooh! Shying away from me, eh Naruto-kun? I wouldn't leave you that easily'_, thought a grinning Anko while Temari was laughing at Kankurou, now she got something new to tease her brother. Meanwhile, Naruto's sudden outburst seemed to calm Hinata's nerves as she smiled innocently at Kankurou who was grumbling to himself incoherently while Zaku too couldn't stop a snort of laughter escaping his mouth.

"Alright, that's enough. Are you guys ready?", said Hayate still chuckling lightly to himself while the three of them nodded whereas the atmosphere immediately became tense as the match was about to start.

"HAJIME!"

To almost everyone's surprise Hinata was the one who dashed towards Zaku, chakra flaming her palms as she prepared for a palm thrust midway. Meanwhile Kankurou had jumped back from the two as he was a long range fighter and began waiting for the right opportunity to strike. Meanwhile Zaku put his right palm forward, facing in the direction of Hinata, all the while smirking to himself.

"**Zankuuha** (Decapitating Air Waves)", he yelled before releasing a concentrated pulse of supersonic sound wave invisible to naked eye while Hinata's eyes widened when she saw a mass of high intensity chakra come towards her at high speed. She immediately jumped high in the air with her momentum, using chakra on her feet and planted herself on the ceiling. Scanning her two opponents, her eyes widened when she saw that Kankurou had no chakra network but that something had a chakra network which was wrapped on his back.

'_How is this possible? Wait, does that mean the real one is hiding in those wrappings, but how is he controlling...chakra threads! So he's a puppet user'_, thought Hinata while a deep frown was etched on her face when she realised that she was at a serious disadvantage as both of her opponents were long range fighters.

'_I have to take care of the sound one first and engage him in taijutsu, that previous attack was deadly'_, she thought before landing on the floor.

"Giving up Hyuuga?", said Zaku cockily while Hinata just ignored him and made a sprint towards him again. Zaku used the same attack again whereas this time she dodged it sidewards, atleast that's what she wanted to do when she suddenly found herself constricted by something and couldn't move out of the way before the attack hit her full force leading to her flying back before skidding to a halt on the floor.

Naruto gripped the metal railing tighter while gritting his teeth, but he had to believe in Hinata, he had faith in her abilities and couldn't give up on her yet. Kurenai was livid at the shameful display of cornering a kunoichi, but the only thing she could do now was have faith in her student. She had never seen those eyes in Hinata, she wouldn't let her hopes dwindle so soon. But even she knew that being hit dead on by an attack like that must have severely injured her, Hinata was tired from the second part of the exams and was already low on chakra. Meanwhile Mei, Yugito, Samui, Karui, the other ice queens and almost all the female jounins frowned at Kankurou, but they knew that it was a part of being a kunoichi and were secretly cheering for Hinata to win the match and show those bastards what a real kunoichi is.

Hinata sat on her knees before blood started to leak out of her ears while she coughed some blood, her whole world was spinning which she deduced that it was because of her body equilibrium was disturbed. Meanwhile Lee looked at Hinata sadly, he knew it was over for her now. He had first hand experienced that attack and knew that there was no chance for her to fight now, even walk properly for atleast two to three hours.

Kankurou had chakra strings attached to his puppet **Karasu** (Crow) which had held Hinata in her place when she tried to dodge whereas the attack didn't affect his puppet at all, although he was a bit sad at doing this, but he had to progress to the finals for their plan and couldn't take any chances while fighting a Hyuuga, whether it be male or female.

"Give up girl, you don't stand a chance now!", spat Zaku as he approached her slowly until he was a few feet away from her. Meanwhile Hinata stood shakily on her wobbly feet before coughing up some more blood.

"N-No w-way...I w-wouldn't give u-up...e-ever", she said while panting heavily while Zaku just backhanded her as she again fell to the ground.

"Fine you slut! I was giving you a chance to get out the easy way, but I guess I'll do it the hard way. I've been itching to try out a new attack anyway", said Zaku with a predatory smirk as he pointed both of his palms at Hinata, only inches away from her face.

"This will take you out for atleast a month, maybe a coma or worst, you'll just die", he said with a dark expression on his face.

"HINATA! QUIT IT ALREADY, YOU'RE IN NO CONDITION TO FIGHT! IT'S NOT WORTH TO RISK YOUR CAREER", bursted Naruto as he finally had watched enough and knew that Hinata was in a bad condition right now. Meanwhile Hinata couldn't hear anything except the loud ringing in her ears due to the previous attack, the only thing she could do was read lips with her Byakugan and only understood when Zaku told her to give up. Because of the backhand slap, she didn't hear anything further, not even Zaku's her eyes widened when she noticed both of his palms just inches away from her face and saw the vibrating form of his palms as well as the high amount of chakra in the attack. She knew if hit by this one, she wouldn't survive. She could almost see death coming in her face in the form of high frequency supersonic vibrations from the hole in his palms.

"**Zankyokukuuha** (Extreme Decapitating Air Waves)", she couldn't hear him, she couldn't hear shouts of Kurenai & Naruto, she couldn't hear anything. The only thing she could see was the chakra form of extremely dense sound waves coming towards her in slow motion, as if mocking her. Telling her that no matter what she does, she would never improve, she would never be able to escape them, that she was weak and was better off if wiped from the face of planet.

She could almost see the disappointed face of her father, the sneers of the elders of her clan, the arrogant smirk of her cousin and sister in those invisible waves, but her mind and heart went into overdrive when she saw the grinning face of the one she loves the most. She could almost subconsciously hear him.

"_Never give up Hinata-chan! No matter what happens, no matters how many odds are stacked against you, no matter how many people think you are weak, believe in yourself, have faith in yourself! March forward, pursue your dreams, pierce through your enemies!", says a grinning Naruto while giving her a thumbs up, determination shining in his magical sapphire blue eyes._

She closed her eyes as the waves of death drew near, she could feel something warm, something she had never felt before emanating from the pit of her stomach and expanding all over her chakra coils.

'_Thank you Naruto-kun. I love you...so much. I would NEVER give up, I'll keep trying till the end and in the afterlife too if I have too'_, she thought as the warm & comfortable feeling in her stomach grew, but when she felt that same warm burning feeling reach her eyes, she snapped her eyes open which were now a shade of glowing blue in the middle. The world zoomed out as everything became even more slower while she welcomed this comfortable warm embrace before everything came back to normal.

Naruto didn't know what was going on, he was screaming for her to forfeit the match, it was like she couldn't listen to him which he deduced that it must have had to do something to with the sound attack. He shouted in despair before jumping over the railing and dashed towards her with high speeds, he didn't know when he had activated the Rinnegan but was surprised to see a huge amount of chakra expanding all over Hinata's chakra coils and when the chakra reached her eyes.

BOOM!

There was a short impulse of chakra blast which almost made him fly backwards, but he braced himself before landing on the floor and consciously deactivated his doujutsu as he didn't want to reveal it before his fight. Everyone's eyes along with his widened when he saw a silver glowing figure of Hinata along with her 'long' hair, her angelic glowing hair swivelling with the wind created by the blast. The silver glow slowly died down for them to see Hinata standing there with her eyes closed, but one significant difference about her appearance was her long hair(just like in shippuden, but with the addition of bangs on either side of her face).

"H-Hinata-ch-chan...", stuttered Naruto as he called for her. He had no idea what the fuck was going on here, but he was worried sick for her. Meanwhile Zaku was sent flying back because of the blast but he flipped in midair and landed away from Kankurou & Hinata.

Hinata was enjoying and taking comfort in this strange warmth when she heard one voice which was deeply imprinted in her heart. She slowly opened her eyes and gasped along with everyone else who could see her eyes. Hinata was completely astonished and mortified at what she was seeing, the level of detail of everything she could see didn't ever seem possible to her, her vision had drastically improved. She could see chakra pathways and tenketsu(chakra points) in a much greater detail than before, some chakra points which earlier were not visible to her were not as clear as a day, her range of vision had improved by leaps & bounds as she could almost scan most of the forest of death also noting the fact that the supposed blind spot of the Byakugan wasn't there and that she could perfectly see through the complete angle i.e. three-sixty degrees. She also felt completely rejuvenated, almost like she never had went through the second exam, also noticing the fact that she now possessed longer hair than before, well much longer. She turned her head to see Naruto standing a few metres away from looking at her with a surprised expression and a small blush adorning his cheeks. She gasped for the second time when she noticed the white chakra with a mixture of small amount of red chakra flowing through his coils.

'_His chakra coils have expanded drastically since the last time I checked his pathways'_, she thought, amazed at the level of detail she was able to see his chakra network through. She also noticed a strange seal on his stomach and stored the question for later, she had a match to win!

"Y-Your e-eyes..", he again stuttered in shock. Hinata would've laughed if not for the situation, he was acting just like her.

"What a-about my eyes", she asked while cutely tilting her head. Meanwhile Naruto was awestruck as well as mesmerised at the beauty of her eyes. They were still of lavender colour, but as you progressed towards the centre of her eyes, the shade changes to that of sky blue. Surrounding her seemingly sky blue pupil was one small dark pink flower petal adorning her eyes (just like Sharingan's one tomoes), while her long hair along with her bangs made her incredibly cute.

He put the palm of one hand on the other, putting wind nature chakra in one and water natured in another to create a plain ice plate before closing the distance between him and Hinata and handed her the plate. Her breathing hitched when she saw the reflection of her eyes.

'_Beautiful'_, was the only thing she could think before realising the situation.

"B-But w-what happened to m-my eyes", she asked worriedly while glancing towards Naruto who strangely was smiling with pure glee.

"Isn't it obvious you idiot? Your Byakugan has evolved dattebayo", he said before grinning in excitement while Hinata's lips slowly curved upwards before it turned into a full blown smile of pure joy.

"Really?", she asked, barely able to contain her excitement while he nodded vigorously. She squealed before jumping at him and hugged him tightly while he accepted it gladly.

"But, I've never h-heard of a second level of Byakugan", she asked in confusion, both not noticing the fact that she was barely stuttering now.

"See, I always told you that you were special Hinata-chan", he said while swiftly moving his hands through her long hair whereas she snuggled into his chest.

"Ahem", they both immediately separated, blushing furiously and noticed a wide eyed Hayate staring at Hinata in bewilderment. Actually, when Naruto scanned his surroundings, he noticed that everyone had their eyes the size of saucers, mouths open like they were trying to say something, but nothing came out. Hinata blushed in embarrassment when she noticed all the stares directed at her. Even Orochimaru, who was acting as a sound team jounin sensei couldn't believe his eyes. Second level of Byakugan? You've gotta be fucking kidding me!

Kurenai had tried several times to dispel a possible genjutsu, not believing her eyes. Nobody, nobody had an idea what was going on, the Byakugan wasn't supposed to have an upgrade, it was just like a stock product with nothing to add. Mei, Hiruzen and A were rendered speechless, first by the fact that today something happened that wasn't ever heard of, and second by the fact that how casually Naruto and Hinata were acting about this. But Hiruzen, the ice queens and Naruto weren't surprised that much, a few days ago even Rinnegan wasn't supposed to exist. Meanwhile Kurenai had an evil grin on her face, oh she couldn't wait to throw this at that bastard Hiashi. The supposed weak heir has reached a level of Byakugan which possibly hasn't ever been achieved in the Hyuuga clan, HAHAHAHA! She could already imagine the stone faced, arrogant laced and the almighty unfazed leader of the Hyuuga clan bowing before her and his daughter.

"Hehehe, sorry...you have a match to win right?", asked Naruto sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head whereas Hinata nodded with a smile.

"A-Alright...I guess we should continue the match, you guys ready?", asked Hayate while Hinata nodded with a predatory smirk, whereas Zaku & Kakurou were not feeling so confident right now but nodded a bit hesitantly. Zaku was already tired because of using a high amount of chakra in that last attack whereas Kakurou brought back his puppet in front of him.

'_You're an idiot Dosu, using so much chakra in one attack. Even if you would have taken out the girl, you still wouldn't have been able to fight the puppet user'_, thought Dosu while shaking his head.

"Alright, continue", said Hayate while signalling them to start the match again.

"Don't think that just because of your bloodline you can match up against me", said Zaku, still trying to intimidate her while Hinata took out several shuriken out of her pouch before throwing them at Zaku, who easily dodged the shuriken by jumping in the air using chakra. While in air, he put his palm towards where Hinata was standing, or where she should have been standing. His eyes widened when he heard a soft voice behind him.

"Looking for me?", whispered Hinata, her upgraded Byakugan still active before delivering a fast & accurate finger strike to a specific spot behind on his back neck.

'_How did she get so fast'_, were Zaku's last thoughts before slipping into unconsciousness while Hinata grabbed him in midair. She landed near Hayate before putting him on the floor.

"He would be out of it for a while proctor, I suggest you call for medics", she said all the while keeping her eyes fixed on Kankurou while Gekko just blinked, having a stupefied expression on his face. How the heck did she do that? That was the question on everbody's minds, especially Neji.

'_That's impossible! Her chakra strike completely missed the chakra point on his neck, I'm sure of it. Then how did he get unconscious? Could it be that her new Byakugan can see chakra points invisible to the simple Byakugan. But even if she did strike any hidden chakra point, it shouldn't be possible for that sound genin to just slip into unconsciousness from one strike only. This is absolutely absurd, not even most professional users of gentle fist are capable of such feat, not even Hiashi-sama. And her speed, how did it suddenly increase so much? What's going on here?'_, thought Neji while glaring at Hinata, a glare full of hate. He was pissed that her weak cousin suddenly became so strong, that the main family had again outdone him. Hiruzen, Ao, Mei & A were having thoughts along the same line. All of the experienced jounins were gobsmacked after witnessing her delicate attack, they had never seen any Byakugan user do that. Naruto on the other hand was just happy and at the same time excited about her doujutsu, he couldn't wait to explore more abilities of this unknown Byakugan. He wasn't surprised that much by her attack, he had already heard & seen things in the past several days that threw logic out of the window, he was just content in knowing that Hinata was finally standing up for herself and kicking some ass.

The medics had immediately came after Hayate's call and had taken Zaku from the arena.

"Alright, you can continue now", said Hayate, eager to know more about this newly discovered doujutsu, while everyone was on edge, anticipation shining in their eyes. Except for Kankurou, who was a nervous wreck by now. Meanwhile all the kunoichi in the arena, had evil grin plastered on their faces.

'_Paybacks a bitch, eh make-up boy?'_, thought all the kunoichis under the tag of women power. Although Hinata, for the first time in her life was enjoying a fight, she wanted to end this fight quickly as this new doujutsu was draining her chakra at a fast rate.

Kankurou using his puppet Karasu, threw several poisoned needles out of its mouth at Hinata, and yet again she was amazed at the level of detail at which she could see the attack coming at her. She could see everything, as if the world was revolving around her in slow motion. She could see the poison drops at the tip of the needles, she could even count the number of needles he threw at her, each & every needle coming at her way, something which shouldn't be possible even for the Sharingan. Easily dodging the needles in a mixture of high speed & fluid movements, her hair flowing with her in melody. Almost all the shinobi out there blushed lightly at seeing her, even some of kunoichi had to fight off the heat rising on their cheeks. Meanwhile Gaara was starting to become more & more psycho at each passing moment, all the while grinning like a maniac.

Kankurou was astonished, the girl just dodged his needles like they were nothing. Those needles are so sharp that even seeing them coming your way is difficult, let alone dodge them. They were even more accurate than senbon, those needles were designed by Sasori of the Red Sand when he was in the village after all.

Quickly taking out a smoke bomb from her shuriken pouch, she threw it at the floor just in front of her before being completely enveloped by the smoke.

'_Smoke screen, what could she be planning right now'_, thought Kankurou anxiously, waiting for her move, his fingers itching to command his puppet.

Suddenly Hinata came out of the smoke dashing towards Kankurou at high speed who immediately again threw poisoned needles at her from the puppets mouth & both of its hands, wanting to disrupt her momentum. He was surprised when all the needles just passed through Hinata like she wasn't there.

'_What the fuck! How did she- a bunshin!'_, realised Kankurou, but a bit too late as Hinata landed in front of him out of nowhere before delivery extremely fast & accurate palm thrusts to his upper body, almost rendering him out of chakra. Kankurou was in a whole world of pain right then, he felt as if he was stabbed by his own needles. He couldn't almost feel any chakra and was feeling tired like was fighting for hours now, his rasped breathing indicating a possible damage to his lungs.

'_She had made a bunshin in the smoke and jumped at that time so that I was distracted by the clone illusion and couldn't see her coming from above. Guess….I lost'_, he thought before falling to his knees.

"That was for calling me a weak heir", said Hinata with an angry look in her eyes before Kankurou slipped into unconsciousness and fell face first on the floor.

"Sensei?", asked a shocked Sakura as she had never seen this side of Hinata before while Kakashi looked towards her to indicate he was listening, "Earlier when that sound genin fainted, how did Hinata do that? It shouldn't be possible with a touch of only unless she's a medic and quite a legendary one at that like Tsunade-sama ", she asked curiously while Naruto too waited for an answer.

"Well, from my guess, she hit a specific chakra point on the back of his neck which should be out of Byakugan's reach. The Main family of the Hyuuga clan are taught the basics of anatomy of the human body at an early age so that they atleast know about the important chakra points and each of their functions in regulating charka flow in specific organs. However not all chakra points are visible to the Byakugan, hence only a few in Hyuuga clan who are masters of the gentle fist can hit these kind of hidden chakra points, and that too by thoroughly memorizing the location of these chakra points, which is attained through intense studies in medical ninjutsu. So what Hinata did should be practically impossible for her, it could've been a fluke or it could be that this new Byakugan can see those hidden chakra points. If the latter is true, this could be a great breakthrough in the field of gentle fist as well as medical science", explained Kakashi in his lecture mode while Sakura's and Naruto's eyes widened.

"Winner: Hyuuga Hinata", announced Hayate after checking Kankurou's pulse. Almost all the jounins began clapping for Hinata, especially the female populace in the arena, some of whom were hooting without any care in the world. You could see the shining smiles and grins of Mei, Yugito, Samui ( a shining smirk), Karui, Kurenai, Anko who was thinking of training Hinata in the ways of torture & interrogation, Hana, Yugao, Temari who was happy that her idiotic brother was brought down a peg but at the same time concerned for him, Kin mainly because she didn't like males in general except Naruto, Sakura, Ino and every female there you could find. Orochimaru was licking his lips like the snake he was, excited at the prospect of probably finding another suitable body.

Hinata blushed in embarrassment, bowed timidly in front of the Hokaga, Raikage & Mizukage before rushing to her spot on the upper railing platform. Kurenai immediately crushed Hinata in a hug upon her arrival, she was beyond happy for Hinata.

"Hinata-chan, congratulations! You did great!", she said releasing her from the hug before giving her a bright smile, she had always considered Hinata as her little sister and deeply cared for her. Also she couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of her eyes as the new Byakugan was still active, which today had broken the boundaries of their doujutsu.

"Th-Thank you K-Kurenai-sensei", she said while blushing in embarrassment before she saw Naruto approaching her and was immediately on her toes.

'_What would Naruto-kun say?'_, she thought a bit nervously while twiddling her index fingers cutely, while her heart was pounding her chest.

"Hinata-chan! That was awesome, the way you kicked the clown's ass was great! I'm really –", he paused while his breathing hitched in throat when he noticed her eyes. He wasn't able to see them properly due to the distance before, but seeing them up close was something else. He had never seen such eyes, the amazing shades of lavender & sky blue made them angelic and beautiful

"Hinata-chan, you're eyes are beautiful", he said breathlessly while Hinata blushed furiously at the compliment, "Ne, don't you agree with me Kurenai-sen-sei", he said dramatically, pushing the 'sensei' before winking at her which went unnoticed by Hinata who was in her own 'Naruto-kun Lalala Dreamlands'.

"O-Of course Naruto-kun", said a blushing Kurenai before clamping her mouth when '-kun' accidently slipped her tongue. She breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed that Hinata wasn't paying attention & had a far-away look in her eyes. Naruto turned to Hinata when he noticed something which made his eyes widen in surprise.

'_There's only one petal in each eye, just like the tomoes of Sharingan when it is activated the first time. Could it be that, there are more levels to this Byakugan just like the Rinnegan & Sharingan? And the veins around her eyes no longer noticeable too'_, he thought before leaning towards Kurenai who again blushed at their closeness.

"Kurenai-chan?", he asked, opting to use '-chan' as Hinata still wasn't out of it while Kurenai's blush got darker in shade. He brought his mouth near her ear before whispering at what he just found about Hinata's new found eyes. Meanwhile Kurenai could feel the familiar heat rising between her thighs as his hot breath tickled her skin, before she nodded at what Naruto said when he backed away from her. She could also feel several glares at her back, and turned around to see the jealous stares of several female jounins along with Hana, Yugao & Anko while everyone else were busy at watching the names which were randomly appearing on the screen for the next match. Kurenai grinned widely before giving them the winning sign with her two fingers.

Feeling drained and tired, Hinata immediately deactivated her new upgrade. As expected, just like Mangekyou Sharingan, her petal-like doujutsu first turned back to the simple Byakugan resulting in her veins around her eyes getting bulged, her pupil turning to lavender, before her eyes completely turned back to normal. Meanwhile Naruto grinned widely in excitement when he saw the three names flash on the screen.

'ROCK LEE vs UZUMAKI NARUTO vs KIMITA DOSU'

'_Oooh this should be good'_, thought almost all of the jounins, genins, chunins and kages.

'_U-Uzumaki, impossible! They all were wiped out weren't they?'_, thought a stunned Mei while Ao & Choujiro were equally astonished.

"Good l-luck for your m-match Naruto-kun", said Hinata with a smile while Naruto gave her thumbs up while grinning, " Watch as I kick those guys butts", he said enthusiastically while she & Kurenai giggled at his antics.

"YOSH! GAI-SENSEI! I WILL NOT DISAPPOINT YOU", yelled Lee with flames in his eyes while Gai cried tears of happiness. Meanwhile Mei, Yugito, A, Ao, Choujiro, Bee and his team paled when they saw a mini Gai yelling the same youthful crap just like the weirdo beside him. Mei had a dark aura around her while Ao & Choujiro stepped away from her nervously.

'_One was enough, but…..two, I've seriously gotta melt their balls off and that godforsaken haircut…..and those horrendous eyebrows too, come to think of it that ridiculous green spandex too. No! I've gotta burn those idiots off this planet'_, thought Mei having an evil grin on her face which unsettled Hiruzen, his sixth sense telling him that he should keep Gai & his mini clone off of Mei's radar.

"Would Uzumaki Naruto, Kimita Dosu & Rock Lee come down here?", said Hayate before Dosu landed on the floor. Naruto was the last person Dosu wanted to fight as he knew what the happy go lucky blonde was capable of, so naturally he was nervous and scared shitless. Afterwards Lee landed before he started doing pushups.

Meanwhile Naruto was grinning in excitement and was ecstatic at finally being able to show what he was really capable of.

'_Hmm, what should I do? Should I show them all of my techniques…..nah. I'll save the really explosive ones for later in the finals, but it wouldn't hurt to show off a bit here. I just want to see their faces, they'll know that I'm not a deadlast'_, he thought before he was brought out of his musings when he heard the proctor yell.

"Oi gaki, are you coming or not?", asked Hayate with raised eyebrows while Naruto grinned sheepishly. He did the ram followed by a snake hand sign before a small whirlwind consisting of lightning sparks engulfed him. The same whirlwind then was seen right besides Lee before it died down to show Naruto standing there rubbing the back of his back, a smile on his face.

"Sorry about that proctor", he apologized while the senbon fell off Hayate's mouth as he was in pure shock at what the kid just pulled. That was the face of almost everyone there, faces full of astonishment, surprise, jealousy (the emo kid), love with a mixture of lust (ice queens!), admiration and confusion.

"G-Gaki, how the hell are you able to do a shunshin, and an elemental shunshin at that", stuttered Gekko before he looked towards the Hokage.

"W-Wind shunshin? At his age? I-Impossible", stuttered Mei surprise clearly evident on her face. Normally she would cover her surprise under a cheery smile, but this was too much to just drink it under her cheerfulness.

"No, i-it wasn't a wind shunshin", said A who had his eyes widened along with Bee, his team & Yugito, "It was a s-storm element sh-shunshin", he said astounded making her eyes widen, who was sputtering incoherent words. Meanwhile Hiruzen too was surprised that Naruto could use two sub elements, earlier he was expecting Naruto to be proficient in three basic elements considering he was training with so many shadow clones for two months, but being able to even use sub elements was a huge bonus for him. Yes, the Hokage side of him was happy that the village had gained a powerful bloodline user, but his grandfather side was extremely happy for Naruto.

"Hokage-dono, this gaki, are your villagers really that stupid to consider a prodigy genin like him a loser & a deadlast? And what have you been teaching him anyway? Two sub elements? That means he has affinity for Wind, Water & Lightning which is extremely rare in itself, you've gotta be kidding me, this is outrageous!", said A while clutching his head in frustration while Hiruzen sighed at Raikage's antics.

"Just wait for a bit Raikage-dono, all of your questions will be answered in a couple of minutes", said Hiruzen while inwardly smirking to himself.

"Does he have a bloodline yo!", said Bee completely surprising Hiruzen and others by his insight.

"Hai", said Hiruzen while they turned their heads to gaze at Hayate who was looking at the Hokage, to whom Hiruzen nodded at to begin the match.

"YOSH NARUTO-KUN! MAY THE BEST FIGHTER WIN!", yelled Lee while Naruto just sweatdropped at his loudness.

"There's no need to yell at me, I standing right here you know", said Naruto.

"BUT THAT WOULD DAMPEN MY FLAMES OF YOUTH!", he again yelled with fire in his eyes while Naruto face palmed himself while muttering 'never mind'. Meanwhile Dosu was planning to first take care of Naruto, possibly with Lee's help as he knew he was no match for the blonde.

"A-Alright, you guys ready?", asked Hayate after coming over his initial shock while all of them nodded at once before creating distance between themselves. Meanwhile, all of those present were intently watching Naruto to see how would he handle himself in a fight, as they had only saw some of his abilities. Sasuke was the one who was the most focused on Naruto, his Sharingan activated, so that he could copy his jutsus and study his movements, what a bastard! Nobody present, knew the extent of Naruto's abilities, not even Hiruzen. Kakashi too had Sharingan out in the open, not for the same reason as Sasuke but to study Naruto's attacks properly, he needed to know just how strong his sensei's son was after all.

"HAJIME!", as soon as Gekko declared the beginning of the match, Naruto & Lee immediately dashed towards each other, their gut instincts leading to them attacking each other first. Dosu, Kurenai and the other genins who had seen Naruto's speed were surprised that to see that he was going much slower than before. The two of them went for a typical punch to their faces before they met in a clash, resulting a dead lock. Naruto's fist was caught by Lee's left hand while Lee's fist was caught by Naruto's left hand, both of them trying to overpower each other, with Naruto holding back his strength greatly while Lee too wasn't giving his all yet.

Both of them flipped backwards just in time to dodge Dosu's sound gauntlet, who was aiming for them. Upon his last flip, Naruto jumped in air using chakra before pulling a shuriken from his pouch. He threw the shuriken in between where Lee and Dosu were currently approaching each other for another attack. Upon coating the shuriken with his wind chakra, he threw the shuriken at them holding back his strength as he didn't want to kill anyone needlessly.

"**Fuuton:** **Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu** (Wind Release: Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique)", he whispered to himself after doing a couple of handseals at moderate speed.

Immediately several wind coated shurikens (around 20) appeared with the original one before heading towards Lee & Dosu who looked upwards in the middle of their sprint, their eyes getting widened by the second. Lee even he had his weights on, was still holding back and thus was easily able to dodge them while Dosu was barely able to avoid the lethal attack. What happened next had everyone's eyes bulging out of their sockets, the shadow shuriken were able to penetrate the hard concrete floor by an inch or two before being dispelled while the original was around 4 to 5 inches deep!

'_Impossible! How is this possible? Is he trying to kill us?'_, thought Dosu with wide eyes while Lee too was having thoughts along the same line before Naruto landed away from them with a serious look on his face.

'_Hmm, I still have ways to go with this jutsu. The shadow ones are still not as powerful as the original one, and I have to work on creating more of these wind shadow shurikens. It seems my chakra control still needs a lot of work'_, he thought in a thinking pose.

'_I've never seen shadow shuriken being used in collaboration with elemental natured chakra'_, thought an astounded Kakashi who had seen the chakra coating the shuriken with his Sharingan, while Sasuke too was frozen in his spot. All the people present except the ones who knew Naruto personally were having difficulty accepting that this was the same loudmouth idiotic good-for-nothing ninja who failed his graduation exams twice. Never had anyone present in the arena seen such damage done by a shuriken. If these shuriken had that much power as to penetrate a concrete floor, it was a truly devastating jutsu. Meanwhile Hiruzen too, the famed professor known for mastering every ninjutsu technique in Konoha was greatly impressed by the technique.

'_This gaki has talent, I wouldn't be surprised if he's able to control one chakra tail at this point. He could be the deciding factor in the war against Akatsuki'_, thought the Raikage with a smirk while Mei was watching Naruto with wonder in her beautiful eyes.

Meanwhile, Naruto just dashed towards Lee before completely vanishing from the sight of all the genins except Lee while Dosu on the other hand was expecting this and could only hope that Naruto was not targeting him right then. Naruto suddenly appeared in front of Lee, who was still surprised by Naruto's speed and couldn't react in time, hence got an uppercut followed by a spinning kick to his stomach making Lee flying back before he righted himself in midair and landed on his feet. Lee spit some blood, but nevertheless smirked while wiping the blood off his mouth whereas Naruto was surprised that his attack didn't affect the taijutsu genin that much.

'_Well I guess those muscles aren't for show after all, but still I did hold back greatly'_, thought Naruto while Dosu could only stand and wait for the right opportunity to attack.

"YOSH! YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE IMPROVED SINCE THE LAST TIME WE MET NARUTO-KUN", yelled Lee while pumping his fists with each other.

'_Oh yeah, I got my butt kicked by him the last time we met , well time for some payback'_, he thought before deciding to be a 'little' more serious.

"LEE! THE LEAF'S LOTUS BLOOMS TWICE!", yelled Gai while tears welled up dramatically in Lee's eyes before he saluted his adult clone.

"HAI GAI –SENSEI!", he yelled before bending down. To everyone's curiosity and surprise he took out two sets of weights from under his leg warmers.

'_Oh come on, does he thinks he can beat Naruto-kun by dropping a couple of weights'_, thought Kin & Temari simultaneously, the latter of whom blushed upon realising that she had addressed Naruto with such closeness. But everyone except for Gai was taken for a wild trip, even Naruto when Lee dropped those weights, upon whose pressure formed a crater on the floor.

"MY FLAMES OF YOUTH SHINE MORE BRIGHTLY NOW!", shouted Lee, stretching his legs and arms a bit before he settled into the Gokken taijutsu stance.

"Let's go... Naruto-kun", Lee whispered before completely vanishing from Naruto's sight. Naruto was surprised both by Lee's speed and that he didn't yell this time. Before he could do anything he was punched hard by Lee in the stomach followed by a kick to his chest leading to Naruto flying back before crashing violently against the wall, creating a crater.

"YOSH! NOW WE'RE EVEN NARUTO-KUN", he again shouted while Dosu along with everyone except Gai had their eyes as wide as saucers. The speed at which he moved easily matched that of a high chunin to low jounin right now.

'_My god, no doubt Konoha is so strong. With such talented genins, you can only imagine their skills when they become jounin'_, thought A & Mei simultaneously while Yugito, Samui, Karui, Omoi & Bee were getting interested in this match. Meanwhile the ice queens, Hinata, Sakura, Kin, Temari & Ino watched Naruto lift himself off the crater with worry in their eyes. Sasuke had an arrogant smirk on his face while muttering- 'I knew that the dobe was a loser'. Kakashi was surprised by Lee's speed, but as far as he knew Gai he should have expected this.

'_Your fate was decided the moment you were matched up against Lee, Uzumaki'_, thought Neji while smirking, for once he was actually rooting for Lee.

'_What will you do now Naruto? With the speed that Lee's moving, you wouldn't even be able to complete the handseals for any jutsu'_, thought Kakashi while wondering just what the unpredictable ninja had in store this time.

"Hehe yeah...now we are even Lee", said a chuckling Naruto while coughing some blood before wiping it with his hand, the wall's debris on his clothes. Lee's along with everyone's eyes widened upon seeing Naruto getup after a crash like that, even chunins should have trouble getting up after such a ferocious impact.

'_Well, jinchuriki's do have high endurance & stamina'_, thought A trying to reason with himself while watching Naruto in amusement.

"Damn! My trench coat is dirty now", exclaimed Naruto while dusting off his white trench coat whereas Hana just sweatdropped.

'_He's not worried one bit about his situation. Just like your mother, ne Naruto-kun?'_, she thought while Yugao just chuckled besides her. Although on the outside, Naruto was acting like, in Kirabi's opinon- 'no worries mothafucka, I'll still beat ya sucka', on the inside he was frowning with himself.

'_Damn it! Damn it! I forgot to tell Itachi-sensei about this. Although my body was enhanced to gain much greater speed, strength & stamina, my normal eyes still aren't used to keeping track of someone moving this fast, ...however Lee's speed is still nowhere near mine. But, I think I should activate Rinnegan or else he's gonna torture me in Tsukiyomi again. Oh yeah, now that I remember I still haven't done anything to get back at him for how he tortured me in that realm, and jiji too for keeping Kurenai-chan and the others away from me even though it was for my benefit. Hehehe...it's prank season!'_, thought Naruto inwardly grinning evilly to himself before focusing on Lee & Dosu, who miraculously was still in this fight somehow.

"Alright bushy brow, I'm gonna get serious now. So whatever trump card you have saved for later, you better use it now", said Naruto, slowly closing his eyes while everyone except Hiruzen and the ice queens watched him in confusion at what he was doing.

'_Hehee...I wish I had a camera to capture everyone's faces when they see his eyes'_, thought Anko while Hiruzen, Kurenai, Yugao & Hana were mentally grinning to themselves.

* * *

><p><strong>So, tell me if you liked the chapter! I'm really targeting the milestone of 1K+ reviews for now, and I think with the way you guys are supporting me, I can reach it and God knows how much hardwork I'm putting in this fic. So yeah, please review and be honest in them. Also, the credit for idea of creating my own second level of Byakugan goes to-'xstofer', who stated this in a review for the third chapter, really thanks a lot bro!<strong>

**AUTHOR NOTES! (IMPORTANT)**

**As stated above I've quite a things to explain, so here goes-**

**First of all, I know you guys are gonna whine about only two fights in this chapter and that this story is going too slow. About only two fights in this chapter, these were the only two main fights among a total of seven matches, so yeah it took quite some space to describe them. I could have chosen the less preferred fights after Hinata's fight and would've covered like two or three more fights, but I chose to do the main things in this chapter. Further, in the next chapter I'll give a short brief of the coming matches instead of detailed fights except the last one which is a bonus for all Sasuke-teme haters. So the next chapter, the preliminaries would end and we'll get on with the plot. Now about the pacing part, you guys have to understand that I've changed a great deal of events from the cannon which I have to explain properly or the story would seem rushed to you. For example, I have to take in consideration of Naruto's doujutsu, Raikage & Mizukage attending the Chunin exams, about Iwa, reactions of who knows how many people when they see the changed Naruto, feelings of the ice queens, Ayumi (Fem. Kyubi), Hinata, Kin, Temari etc and what not. Also I have to add a tinge of humour in every chapter which slows down the plot pacing a bit, but it's my style of writing. So yeah, if you want quality chapters, I have to take things slow & steady. **

**Second, about the second level of Byakugan. I know many of you guys don't prefer artificial bloodlines and will probably flame me, especially those who hate Hinata and probably whine about her getting too powerful, but I had to upgrade Byakugan as it was too weak compared to Sharingan & Kishimoto made a mess of it. So, in my fic Byakugan too would be strong, having it's own strengths. So flame all you want, I'll just outright ignore them! And I wouldn't change my mind.**

**Third, some of you may be considering that I'm concentrating too much on Hinata with like Naruto loving her the most & something or giving her too much power, no it's not like that. NaruHina is not the main pairing in this fic, IT'S NARUKUSHI DAMMIT! I'm just trying to describe the feelings of EACH & EVERY girl properly, so that atleast I'm not going fast with the relationships. If you think this chapter makes it look like NaruHina is the main pairing as some of my friends said, well then you just fucking wait till Kushina comes, just you wait! Naruto will love all the girls equally, but since Kushina is his mother and to-be-lover, she will have a special place in his heart, got that! So again, I'm gonna ignore flames about Hinata in this chapter or any other chapter.**

**Fourth, some of the reviewers have been asking about- ' When did Kakashi helped with his yokai training?' or some other things which I tend to explain in further chapters. Just like in the first chapter, I'm again saying, no requesting that please be patient as everything will be explained at some point in the future chapters. This is NOT completely following cannon, since I started this fic from the second part of Chunin exams, it doesn't mean that before that it was the same as cannon. Whatever was different in Naruto's past I have covered or will cover in flashbacks, like the flashback I gave with the three ice queens helping Naruto while Anko was gone with Orochimaru at that time(sorry if I didn't tell you this before about why Anko wasn't there along with others to help him). So whatever I write, I'm writing with a reason that will be at some point explained. So please try to be a patient reader, this is my first fic after all, so you can go a bit easy on me, ne?**

**Lastly I would like you guys to suggest possible names for the second level of Byakugan, it doesn't matter if it is in English, I'll just translate it later.**

**So, that should be it. If you guys have any questions (Ofcourse you would, human mind is a curious one after all), feel free to ask in the reviews and I'll PM you back. This chapter I think was the longest till now (excluding the author notes), so please don't hesitate to review, even two or three words would be helpful. Well see you next time & take care! **

**N6023**


	10. Maelstrom Unleashed

**Hey there guys, so here's the tenth chapter you all have been waiting for eagerly. And many-many thanks for the reviews and suggesting me the names of the upgraded Byakugan in the last chapter. I've taken one and will give that person credit when I tell the name in the upcoming chapters. And sorry for the cliffy in the last chapter (I'm evil and I know that!).**

**A lot of you guys have been asking if there will be any lemons, what do you think? OFCOURSE there will be lemons! According to me, a fic lacks in the romance department, if there aren't any lemons (And I'm not talking about mindless crazy sex, but love making between two lovers). Well I'm not gonna waste anymore of your time, so here we go-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-10-Maelstrom Unleashed!<strong>

* * *

><p>All of them waited with held breaths, wanting to know what the blonde enigma was trying to achieve by a closing his eyes in the midst of a match. All of their eyes widened when they felt the sudden increase of chakra from the Naruto, the effects of the white chakra flowing in waves in the arena. Just like in the forest, all of them felt at peace, comfortable while warmness flowed through their bodies.<p>

'_What is this feeling? It's so….calm, peaceful, serene, comfortable. But…..what's happening here?'_, thought Mei while Naruto's eyes were still closed for the dramatic effect, he couldn't see their faces but atleast he could imagine it. Meanwhile, all of the jounins, chunins, genins and the three kages welcomed and basked in this strange aura with a mix of confusion.

'_It's just like in the forest, but this time it is much stronger'_, thought the genins and Kurenai who had experienced this first hand in the forest of death except Sasuke who was confused as hell as to what was going on, while he could feel his curse mark acting negatively towards this chakra. Orochimaru too was wide eyed at this strange peaceful aura, surprised & confused that Naruto's chakra is able to produce such effects. If his chakra would've radiated bloodlust, he could understand as Naruto was a jinchuriki and his chakra could've been tainted by the Kyuubi, but this was completely unexplainable.

'_This chakra is the exact opposite of youki, but still as strong and dense. You truly are interesting Naruto-kun, if only you had a promising bloodline, I would have preferred your body instead of Sasuke-kun. Although I'm still not able to decipher as to how you're able to use ice element at such age, but you just maybe be my next vessel if Sasuke-kun fails'_, he thought with an inward sinister laugh.

"M-Mizukage-sama…..t-this is im-impossible. This g-gaki has white c-coloured chakra, it's n-not normal blue", said Ao in astonishment, his Byakugan activated while Mei & Choujiro's eyes widened further, if it was even possible.

"B-But h-how can it b-be possible A-Ao-sempai", stuttered Choujiro timidly, voicing what Mei wanted to say while Ao just shook his head to signify that he had no idea whatsoever.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes, some of the jounins straightaway fainted from shock who knew about Rinnegan and thought about it as only a myth. It was like a bombshell being dropped on everyone present their except the ice queens and Hiruzen. Some were surprised that he had a bloodline & a doujutsu at that and the experienced jounins and the two kages were astounded to the limit of infinity as they thought of Rinnegan as only a myth. Purple eyes, black dot pupil with one ring surrounding it, it was clear as a day for those who had read about his legendary doujutsu. His eyes seemed to have to a purple glow, possibly because of excess flow of charka through his optical chakra coils. The expression on Orochimaru's face was priceless, it was like Itachi himself was offering him the Sharingan.

'_H-How is this possible? Two Rinnegan users? I thought only Pain possessed it, but he has three rings while this jinchuriki has only one which means he still hasn't tapped it's full potential. Although I still prefer Sharingan to copy ninjutsu, but I think I'll give my present to Naruto-kun and the Hyuuga heiress. Just imagine, having all the three great doujutsus in my possession will make me the strongest shinobi alive and with Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan I'll be immortal, kukuku'_, he thought while inwardly cackling to himself.

'_Hmm, I still can't control the amount of chakra I put behind my eyes to activate Rinnegan leading to them glowing a bit, which can be dangerous for me in sneak missions at nights._ _Although my chakra control is much better than before, but considering that my charka reserves increased too, my chakra control still needs vast amounts of improvement_'_, _he thought while mentally making notes as to in what areas he would need to work extensively. He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard an excited shout.

"YOSH NARUTO-KUN! YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH ARE GLOWING IN YOUR EYES! WE SHALL FIGHT AN HONEST & A SWEATY BATTLE TO DETERMINE WHO IS BETTER", said Lee while pumping his fists in air leading to Naruto's eyebrows getting twitched in irritation.

'_Seriously! Is there anything that can surprise this guy? But hmm….. I wonder how Sasuke & Itachi would sound like if they acted like Lee & his sensei here. Oh I know-_

'_HN ITACHI-KUN! YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE DAMPENED! HOW DARE YOU POUR UNYOUTHFUL WATER ON OUR ARROGANCE FLAMING, SHARINGAN BLAZING, JUTSU CRAZIN', FUGAKU MOTHERFUCKING, PIECE OF …YOUTHFUL CLAN! I WILL DISTINGUISH YOUR UNYOUTHFUL EXISTENCE WITH MY YOUTHFUL SHARINGAN!'_

'_FOOLISH LITTLE BROTHER! YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH YOUTHFUL FLAMES OF HATRED, AND YOU KNOW WHAT….YOUR FLAMES OF DICK WILL ALWAYS BE WEAK! BUT DONOT WORRY SASUKE-KUN, I WILL CLEANSE YOU OF YOUR UNYOUTHFUL DICK! KISAME-KUN, GIVE ME THE SAMEHADA! (YEAH BABY! SAMEHADA SHAVES 'YOU-KNOW-WHAT'!)'_

_Hehehe, I wonder if should write a book like the Toad Sannin, whose title would be 'Icha-Uchiha Kill the Traitor Tactics' starring Emo Uchiha & an Emo-tionless Uchiha, yeah, it would be a widespread sale on the scale of epidemic. Damn I need to concentrate, there's a match going on, but geez! How much time will these guys keep staring at me like that? It's not like I slaughtered the Hyuuga clan by myself in one night'_, he thought before observing Lee's underdeveloped chakra coils.

Meanwhile, it looked like nobody was ready to move on. Kakashi had both of his eyes widened along with Sakura, who was sputtering incoherently and Sasuke, who must have been thinking- _'this shit got no dibs on Sharingan, it's the best yo!'_.

Both A & Mei turned their heads to look at Hiruzen for answers who only said one word, "Later", before they looked towards the the blonde gaki again, not in the mood to argue with the Hokage when there's an interesting match going on.

'_I-I can't believe it! After so many years, it has been awakened! Ooooh Kitten! Look how sexy he looks with those dominating eyes, c'mon you gotta snatch him before anybody else does. I wonder if he's as much dominating in bed'_, purred Nibi inside Yugito's head who was blushing a storm, so surprised that she couldn't even berate her bijuu. Meanwhile Shukaku was screaming in Gaara's head to stay away from those eyes while Hachibi too, although not on a psychotic scale like Shukaku, but still warned Bee to be wary of this gaki.

Meanwhile, Naruto had decided that it was time to continue the match before he created a shadow clone, again surprising the visitors ( Raikage, Mizukage and their groups).

Dosu's eyes widened when the shadow clone completely disappeared from his vision while Lee could still see him as he was used to such speed movements. The clone suddenly appeared in front of Dosu, startling him before giving him a uppercut leading to the sound genin loosing some teeth and propelling towards the ceiling. Just as he was about to crash, the clone again appeared in a blur before delivering a lethal dropkick to his midsection leading to Dosu getting the wind knocked out of him. Such was the force of the blow that he disappeared in a blur before crashing on the floor creating a crater. Dosu couldn't move, blood was leaking out of his mouth, his eyes half lidded and multiple bruises covered his body. He knew several bones in his body were broken and was in a whole world of pain right now. His eyes again widened when he felt the cold metal of a kunai pressed against his neck by the clone who seemingly had appeared out of nowhere.

"That was for how you treated Kin-chan you asshole! And if you ever treat her like that again, there'll be hell to pay, you got that", whispered the clone fiercely while adding chakra to his Rinnegan, which glowed further adding to his threatening glare while Dosu could only nod, the small action in itself sending jolts of pain throughout his body.

"Now are you gonna give up or should I just finish you off?", he said pressing the kunai further, drawing a thin line of blood from his skin.

"P-Proctor... I... give ...up", he said in rasped breaths, barely able to speak before slipping into unconsciousness. Meanwhile, the spectators were again stunned by the speed and the brutality of the hits that Naruto had delivered to the poor genin, although he only delivered two hits. Raikage had a knowing smirk on his face, excited to see a taijutsu spar that he knew would be coming. So far he had seen that the green wierd genin only used taijutsu whereas the Hokage had explained to him that he couldn't use genjutsu or ninjutsu. And with the speed that the weirdo was moving he knew the Kyuubi jinchuriki wouldn't be able to complete handsigns for ninjutsu or genjutsu, so he too would have to resort to taijutsu. He was ecstatic, very much so.

Kin too was silently cheering for Naruto and was quite happy with the blows Dosu received from him, even though it was not enough payment for how he beated her almost everyday she was just happy that Naruto cared for her. Sasuke as usual being his emo self, was gritting his teeth in frustration and anger towards Naruto, how dare the dobe outclass him? Sakura had admiration in her eyes, but she along with almost everyone still hadn't gotten over the shock that Naruto possessed a doujutsu. Kakashi didn't know if his eyes would return to normal size anytime soon, as they just kept widening with the things that Naruto was pulling out there. Although he knew Naruto had talent as he had helped him in training in private, but this was ridiculous! How could he have gotten so much strong, and his appearance too? He was just praying that these preliminaries would end up as soon as possible so he could get some answers.

The ice queens were watching with proud smiles on their faces while their eyes held love, admiration and lust, something which was only reserved for Naruto.

'_Are you watching this Shina-Nee-chan, your son is kicking some serious ass here. You would be proud at how Naru-kun is turning out to be'_, thought Anko with a serene smile, while tears threatened to pour out of her chocolate brown eyes, she wanted so much for Naruto to meet his mother, but fate deemed it impossible after all, and she was sounding like a certain Hyuuga now! She quickly focused on the match, sucking up on her tears as she had a bad ass image to maintain. Meanwhile Samui had a small blush on her face while her eyes held somewhat akin to admiration as well as frustration. Admiration because of how strong Naruto was despite how the villagers treated him and frustration because ever since she saw him, THIS DAMN BLUSH WOULDN'T GO AWAY! Seriously, what was wrong with her, she was regarded as the next ice queen after Yugito in her village and this boy, no man, was able to do that with just his looks, without even speaking. And his smile, damn! How cute can he look more, wasn't his handsome face enough already. His muscular, but not overly, slim toned body wasn't doing any justice to her hormones too! And damn, oh my god, she was sounding like a pervert now.

"Ne ne Samui, how come your icy cheeks are suddenly so red?", asked Karui with a knowing grin while Samui was caught off guard with her comment.

"W-What do y-you mean?", she stuttered while Karui's grin widened.

"Oh, nothing... reaaaally nothing", said Karui with her teasing grin while Samui inwardly groaned, she knew she was in for a whole world of teasing once the preliminaries ended.

"The way you said nothing, it certainly sounded like something", said Omoi while sucking his lollipop, before a vein popped on Karui's forehead.

"Shutup baka!", she said while hitting him over the head, before his beloved lollipop again popped out of his mouth and fell on the dirty floor.

"WOULD YOU STOP DOING THAT! NOW MY LOLLI-CHAN IS ALL DIRTY NOW", he yelled at her heatedly while she again yelled at him, " I WOULD STOP IF YOU WOULDN'T ACT LIKE AN IDIOT", their foreheads grinding against each other, sparks flying out from the friction if that was even possible while the nearby jounins looked at the pair awkwardly, the others too focused on the match to see anything else.

Meanwhile Yugito was blushing up a storm from the constant ramblings by her perverted two tailed demon, and could only put her hands on her cheeks to hide it.

"Don't hide ya blush on yer cheek, ya should have a pervy peek!", rapped the hachibi jinchuriki followed by a bonk on the head from a flustered Yugito. Geez! Wasn't her pervert of a bijuu not enough?

"C'mon Lee, are you planning on just standing there all day, yelling about your flames of youth?", said Naruto mockingly while Lee's face suddenly took an uncharacteristic serious expression.  
>"I'll defeat you with everything I have Naruto-kun", he said fiercely while Naruto just created some shadow clones. They all grinned at Lee before vanishing from the genin's sight while Lee too disappeared in a blur. Both sides threw punches and kicks towards each other, which were mainly a blur to the genins. They would only appear for a while before again vanishing and continuing with their wreckless attacks, as Shikamaru would say it. Lee was surprised that Naruto &amp; his shadow clones were easily dodging and countering his attacks, earlier of which he couldn't even see. Lee suddenly ducked under a punch before back flipping away from Naruto, who just stood there while he dispelled the remaining shadow clones.<p>

"I see that we're evenly matched in speed Naruto-kun, indeed you're a worthy opponent ", said Lee before gazing towards Gai, as if asking for permission for something while his sensei, who was uncharacteristically serious nodded.

"Yosh Naruto-kun! Now you'll see the spring time of youth! I think this match has dragged on for much longer, it's time to end this", said Lee while Naruto wondered what else could the taijutsu genin be hiding under his belt. Meanwhile Kakashi had suspected about Lee's next attack and was currently explaining that to Sakura & Sasuke, the latter having a maniacal glint in his eyes about possibly getting more power. Lee held his elbows in cross position in front of his chest, while his face was scrunched up in concentration. Hinata's eyes widened, who had her second level of Byakugan activated for the time being, when she saw his first chakra gate slowing opening. Naruto, Kakashi, Sasuke & Neji couldn't see that much detail as Hinata's eyes, but they could see the sudden increase in chakra flow when Lee whispered.

" **Kaimon:Kai **(Gate of Opening: Release)", Naruto's eyes widened while Lee's muscles could be seen bulging a bit along with increased chakra flow. He had read about the eight chakra gates during his secret study hours he spent in library, but it was a forbidden technique wasn't it?

'_Shit! That was unexpected, I wonder how many gates is he able to open at this point of time. But...if he's going that far, I guess I should go further too'_, thought Naruto before a look of concentration formed on his face, his elbows on his side before a blue sparking electricity started covering his fist.

"**Lightning Fist"**, he whispered while the Raikage and his companions had their jaws on the ground when they saw the blue layer of sparking lightning completely covering Naruto's hands.

'_Holy Shit! That's my technique, although an incomplete one. Mine too looked like that when I was developing it. But I've never taught this technique to anyone, could it be that he developed this himself, even covering your hands with lightning natured chakra takes almost an year to accomplish, just what this kid is actually capable of? I don't know about jounin, but he easily equals an elite Chunin'_, thought A while Hiruzen just had calm look on his face, taking into account just what Naruto had learned in that training with Itachi. Meanwhile Mei was desperately trying to not look surprised with what both the genins were pulling out there.

'_Nope! I'm not impressed at all! Yep, this is nothing! Yep, Yep! Oh my god, how can he open chakra gates at such... Nope, nothing at all! He must be much older than he looks, yep I bet he is. He's just under a sort of transformation jutsu. But that blonde gaki looks so hot with that lightning...NO! NO! NO! It's probably just a genjutsu. Kai! Kai! KAI! DAMMIT!'_, thought Mei with a cheery smile while inwardly she was crying anime tears, she was known in her village for her calm, composed and cheery temper after all. She couldn't just be anxious about something so trivial, right? RIGHT? The gates, she could understand as the green karate kid was extremely good in taijutsu and could probably match most of the chunins. But what was with that blonde gaki? Almost all the techniques he had used up until now, were suicidal even for chunins, he was a jinchuriki she could understand, but even they had their limits and he was only twelve or thirteen years old for heaven's sake.

" **Kyuumon:Kai **( Gate of Rest: Release)", whispered Lee while chakra was visible now around him in a sheen layer having a blue hue while Naruto just waited for him patiently, who had already decided that he would be using his full speed now.

"**Seimon:Kai **( Gate of Life: Release)", again said the green clad genin while his hair started wavering in mid air, the air got thicker around him with the colour density of the chakra layer getting increased and his pupils were no longer visible. Dust was picking up around him violently while all the genins watched this in awe, wondering if they even had a chance if they had fought any two of these, they seemed to be in a whole other league.

Lee looked up with his pupil less white eyes, his skin taking on a slight red hue before he again blurred out of genins sight completely with much greater speed than before. Even some of the low level jounins were having trouble spotting him, while Samui, Karui & Darui couldn't even see him unlike before. The genins were clueless as before as to where Lee was while Sasuke was barely able to keep up with him even with his Sharingan, although Kakashi could easily see him even with his naked eye as he was an elite jounin for a reason. The ice queens being the prodigies too were easily able to keep track of Lee but were shocked at his speed and couldn't help but worry for Naruto, even Kurenai had doubts if Naruto could move that fast.

Lee suddenly appeared behind Naruto going for a kick at the back of his head and to everyone's shock & amazement, Naruto ducked before planting a spinning kick on Lee's stomach sending him crashing him into the wall.

"Never underestimate your opponents Bushy-Brow...especially me", said Naruto with a serious expression on his face, again surprising everyone with his speed. Meanwhile Gai had a shocked expression on his face, never did he thought that a genin would be able to match the power of not one, but three celestial gates.

'_He is something else, the villagers treat him like he's a loser but look at him now. He's kicking my strongest student's ass even when he is in celestial gate mode'_, thought Gai with a hidden smirk, mainly because he cared for Naruto, although not on the level of Lee but still he knew what the jinchuriki had to go through in his life. He was grinning in anticipation as to how Naruto would handle himself when Lee goes further. Meanwhile Lee too was surprised with the strength that Naruto had kicked him with, it was much greater than before.

'_He's able to keep up with me even when I'm in celestial mode, and the strength in that kick was much greater than before, was he holding back too? You truly are the strongest opponent I could've gotten Naruto-kun'_, thought Lee with a smirk while wiping the blood off his face, the layer of chakra around him flaring as he stood up while he could feel the second gate healing his injuries.

' _It's only because of the Rinnegan that I'm able to see his movements. What if I had never even activated this doujutsu, was I that weak? He would've beaten me in a blink. I don't want to rely on my doujutsu for everything, how am I to become Hokage if I rely so heavily on Rinnegan and not do any hardwork to hone MY skills, that's the main reason I guess no one from the Uchiha clan could become Hokage except maybe Uchiha Mikoto, known as the __**Kami No Kawarimi **__(God of Substitution) for she had her own skills besides the Sharingan'_, he thought while clenching his fists, hating the fact that he has to rely on Rinnegan just to see his movements.

"Never keep your eyes off the enemy Naruto-kun, especially me", retorted Lee in a whisper after appearing behind Naruto, whose eyes were widened before he felt an excruciating pain in his back, result of Lee kicking him as hard as he could. Naruto was sent flying towards the wall at high speeds.

'_Shit! How could I lose focus in a middle of a fight?'_, he thought while berating himself before Lee suddenly again appeared in front of him, giving him an uppercut to his jaw sending Naruto upwards in midair. While Naruto was horizontally in midair, Lee was suddenly behind Naruto in a flash before wrapping the white bandages around his body which were earlier on his forearms. All of this had happened in span of a second for the spectators, such was the speed of their movements while the next thing the genin could see was Naruto wrapped in bandages from Lee behind him, both of them descending fast towards the floor while rotating.

"**Omote Renge **(Hidden Lotus)", yelled Lee as their speed of descending increased while they continued to rotate.

' _Just one moment of lost focus can cost you dearly_ _Naruto-kun, and now you'll pay the price for it'_, thought Gai while the ice queens kept a neutral face on the outside but were worried sick for him, they knew if that attack was successful Naruto wouldn't be getting up soon, even with his fast recovering rates.

"It's over Naruto-kun", said Lee while Naruto just smirked. Lee's along with everyone's eyes widened when some of the small chunks of wall that were lying on the floor due to the fights puffed in smoke to reveal shadow clones, who formed a circle surrounding the centre of where Lee & Naruto were anticipated to crash. All of the clones did fast handseals, much faster than before putting large amounts of chakra, ending on the snake seal before they yelled in chorus-

" **Ranton: Zoufukufuu Boufuusetsu **(Storm Release: Amplifying Wind Blizzard)", as suddenly the wind around them started to form a rotating fierce whirlwind at the centre carrying currents of blue electricity and grew in size to that of a small tornado. Lee's eyes widened when he felt their speed slowing down at fast rates before both of them started to rotate with the whirlwind. Lee grit his teeth when he felt the sharp currents of lightning in the wind attack him, it felt like thousand needles were piercing him while he was surprised when Naruto remain completely unaffected from the jutsu.

Immediately loosening his wrappings around Naruto, Lee used his super speed in the celestial gate mode to escape the raging storm. Everyone present had to shield their eyes off the dust and wind that seemed to raging in the arena, putting large cuts & gashes on the wall and concrete floor. Raikage's eyes widened when he saw the electricity in the wind.

'_What? This is not the storm element that Darui uses! The gaki is using wind with lightning here while Darui uses water with lightning to form laser-like attacks, but this storm element is much better for wide range attacks'_, he thought while Yugito & Bee were having thoughts along the same line.

"W-What power!", said Ao while shielding his eyes, easily able to see with his Byakugan the huge amount of chakra that the blonde jinchuriki had put up in that jutsu. Meanwhile Mei had decided that she just had to meet this jinchuriki, there was something about besides his looks that attracted her to him, she just had this urge to know him. He was different from anyone she'd ever met, the kind of power he possessed at such young age, she would've expected that he would flaunt his skills. But from the start of the match, he was calm, composed and not easy to anger. Although sometimes, he lacked focus but considering what he had went through his life, there must be an inferno going in his head or maybe the Kyuubi could be the reason for this, she didn't know but was dying to meet him.

Meanwhile the ice queens were stunned at the damage level the attack had caused, all the walls were tattered with multiple deep cuts while a deep crater had formed on the floor where the epicentre of the supposed whirlwind was. Considering the amount of cuts on the wall, they could tell that this attack was capable of taking out large number of enemies simultaneously.

Slowly the whirlwind died down to show Naruto standing at the centre of it apparently unharmed while Lee could be seen standing at a distance from him, having multiple cuts and bruises all over his body. His green splandex was teared in multiple places while blood was leaking out of his forehead, whereas Lee was panting a bit from the strain the third gate was starting to put on him.

"Give up Lee, I can see that opening the forbidden chakra gates are starting to put strain on your body. This match is over, it's not worth to put your career at risk", said Naruto with an emotionless tone, while inwardly he was a bit worried for the guy. Ofcourse Lee was a weird, loudmouth, sometimes irritating but he had come to like the genin as he saw himself in Lee. Although Lee acted crazy with the 'flames of youth' crap and all, but Naruto could see that he had a good heart and didn't want him to put his ninja career at risk just for a preliminary match, as Naruto was pretty sure with skills that Lee had displayed in front of the three kages, he was sure to progress to the finals so there was no need for him to push himself past his body limits.

"N-No I will...prove myself...and I wouldn't find a better opponent...to do so...prepare yourself Naruto-kun", said Lee while panting as he again crossed his arms in front of his face.

" **Shoumon:Kai **(Gate of Wound: Release)", said Lee while his muscles bulged further, his veins now visible while the chakra around him flared much greater than before, his skin's shade of red darkening while the ground started to crack under his feet. Naruto was thrown for the loop when he saw Lee opening the fourth gate, he had read that beyond the third gate, although you gain further speed and power, but the body muscles begin to tear under the pressure of so much chakra being released at once. He was about to yell when Lee screamed-

"**TOMON:KAI! **(Gate of Limit: Release)", dust spun wildly around his feet, a small crater forming under his feet, the density of chakra increasing further while his hair flowing upwards due to the force of excess chakra. His muscles started to further expand as the veins were now more visible on his skin, while Lee winced when he felt the pressure being exerted on his muscles.

'_This guy's crazy! Does he want to die or better, does he want to kill me? He's taking it too far, I can already see his muscles starting to rip apart. I was giving my all in taijutsu when he had the third gate opened, but I wouldn't even be able to see him now, much less match his speed. I can't even do handseals for ninjutsu if he's that fast. I think I have to use Ayumi-chan's chakra, for mine as well as for his sake'_, thought Naruto while panicking a bit, he didn't want to use Ayumi's chakra, but the situation here called for him to finish the match as fast as possible.

_'Lee, you were this powerful all along?'_, thought a surprised Neji, he had never thought that Lee could become this much powerful with hard work alone. But he was curious as to what fate had in store for his green clad teammate.

_'I don't think I can match him in taijutsu any longer, then I'll just have to resort to a combination of ninjutsu & taijutsu'_, thought our favourite blonde before putting his hands in a criss-cross sign, using large amounts of chakra.

"**Tajuu Kage Bunshin No Jutsu **(Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu)", he said, the result of which everyone's eyes getting out of their sockets except the ones who knew about his expertise in this jutsu, but even they were surprised that he still had this much chakra left after using jutsus which would have easily exhausted a jounin. The whole arena was filled with white trenchcoat wearing blondes wearing smirk on their faces. The floor where the match was taking place was completely occupied by his clones, some of them were standing on upper railings, some of them sitting leisurely on the large ram handseal, some of them standing upside down on the ceiling while the rest of them were standing among the jounins and the three kages, who had their jaws on the floor.

"YO!", all the clones chorused except the original Naruto who was panting a bit, as using sub elemental as well as the elemental jutsus along with his average chakra control took a toll on him, while Kakashi just sweatdropped.

_'That's my line'_, he thought while shaking his head at the antics of his sensei's legacy, or rather his clones.

_'This kid just doesn't stop surprising me'_, thought A with an amused grin before he was interrupted, "Hey muscle man, give us some space will ya? It's tight around here", said a clone among the others while A's eyebrows twitched at the nickname whereas Yugito, Mei & Karui giggled while Samui had a smirk on her face.

"It's not my fault you created so many clones gaki!", replied A heatedly while a vein popped on his forehead when he saw the middle finger in front of his face, courtesy of the same clone, "Up yours sucker!", he said while Mei & Yugito couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing, it wasn't everyday you see a genin insulting a kage fearlessly whereas A just punched the clone leading to it getting dispelled, a furious expression on the Raikage's face.

"Don't take it personally Raikage-dono, sometimes some of his clones have their own individual personality traits, which I've no idea how's that possible", said a chuckling Hiruzen while A just took deep breaths to calm himself, Mei & Yugito still snickering lightly which was stopped by a glare from A.

Mei turned around when she felt someone tap on her shoulder, to come face to face with yet another clone who gave her a charming smile leading to a blush adorning the cheeks of the beautiful redhead.

"You're the famed Godaime Mizukage of Kirigakure No Sato I presume?", he asked while Mei gave him her cheerful smile, this time the clone blushed.

"Yeah!", she replied cheerfully while both of them wore a challenging smirk inwardly.

_'C'mon, you think you can make me blush and get away with it'_, she thought with an inward smirk.

_'Is that so huh? I accept your challenge'_, thought the clone, before he took Mei's soft hand and kissed the top of it. Ao & Choujiro's jay dropped in astonishment that someone had the balls to do that to their Mizukage while Mei's face was as red as tomato, she certainly didn't expected him to do that.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto, pleased to meet your acquaintance", he said, yet again smiling charmingly at her while she could only stutter in response.

"T-Terumi M-Mei", Ao & Choujiro had shocked look on their faces, no one was able to do that to their Mizukage as long as they could remember,it was like seeing Kisame crying over his broken teeth!

"You there, popsicle guy", said yet another clone while a lollipop sucking Omoi turned around to see an anxious looking clone.

"You shouldn't each lollipops as they contain artificial flavoured sweetener which may affect your taste buds, liver and your stomach leading to digestion problems, which can further lead to constipation and effect your overall performance during the missions. And if you fail any important mission, your village may get in trouble or you may get demoted leading to the destruction of your entire ninja career!", he said anxiously while flailing his arms, whereas Omoi had an equally anxious look on his face when he understood the gravity of this ridiculous situation while Karui's eyebrows were twitching dangerously at having another anxious freak.

Omoi nodded at the clone silently before turning towards Karui who had murder in her eyes, if he annoyed the crap out of her.

"I think he's right... but do I sound that ridiculous?", he asked in a hushed tone while Karui bomped him on the head.

"OFCOURSE YOU BAKA! TOOK YOU A WHILE TO FIGURE OUT DIDN'T IT?", she yelled while Omoi just clamped his ears further pissing her off.

Well ahm, that aside Lee had a surprised look on his face like everyone else but was brought out of his stupor when he felt the pain searing in his muscles before he completely vanished from everyone's sight except maybe elite jounins and the kages. The clones began to dispell at astounding rates, courtesy of Lee who was eliminating all the clones like they were nothing, but this was all the time the original Naruto needed as a red chakra cloak started to slowly form around his body. Everyone's eyes widened when they felt the evil and the malicious aura radiating off Naruto. Those who knew about the Kyuubi were shocked to no end to see a jinchuriki this young, willingly using his bijuu's chakra, and Kyuubi at that who was 'said' to be the most difficult one to tame. Even Hiruzen didn't see this one coming, he had no idea that the boy could willingly harness the demonic chakra.

"T-This is amazing, at such young age...", stuttered Yugito, who couldn't believe her eyes while Nibi was constantly screaming in her head to claim him as her mate. The only one who wasn't surprised was Kakashi, as he was the one who helped Naruto in controlling his youki after the wave mission. Seeing Lee's speed, he was kinda expecting him to do this.

Naruto dispelled his remaining clones while Lee was on his knees from the pain and was watching him in astonishment, that he still had chakra left, although he had no idea why it was red. Lee's eyes widened when he noticed Naruto's transformed features, mainly his eyes, Rinnegan still activated. They were blood red, one black ring surrounding a small black slitted pupil.

_'Kitten! He looks so hot! You've got to claim him, if not then let me out and I'll do it myself!'_, yelled Nibi in excitement, her demonic urges making her want to bang him as long as he was conscious while a blushing Yugito just continued to ignore her. Meanwhile Hinata had slipped into unconscious sometime ago, mainly due to fatigue, both physically & emotional and chakra exertion.

_'I've gotta make this quick, don't want the likes of Shikamaru to suspect anything, although I think I'm already under his suspicious gaze. I'll just have to use that move to finish this, I'm sorry bushy brow, but this may hurt worse than your hidden lotus'_, he thought before creating several youki enforced shadow clones while he himself charged his hands with lightning natured chakra to prepare for his final attack.

Lee was just about to take a mad dash towards Naruto when he felt himself flying in midair while his eyes widened at the pain he was feeling, courtesy of an extremely fast shadow clone delivering a quick uppercut to his jaw while the other shadow clones jumped towards him before delivery a combined painful leg drop resulting in him falling towards the floor at a fast rate.

_'NOW!'_, thought the original Naruto before using a chakra enhanced jump towards the ceiling while Lee was falling. The shadow clones in midair dispelled themselves while the shadow clone who had uppercut him was standing at the exact spot where Lee was falling. Just as Lee was about to collide, the doppelganger standing below him yelled.

"**SHINRA TENSEI! **(Divine Judgement)", the effects were immediate as Lee was propelled upwards at high speeds, much to the extreme shock of everyone except Hiruzen. Meanwhile the original Naruto who had jumped towards the ceiling used it as a springboard using chakra on his feet to increase the recoil power before he was on a collision course with Lee, both of them moving towards each other at high speeds, invisible to almost everyone except the elite jounins and the kages. While in midair, Naruto started to spin just like in Gatsuuga, the lightning natured chakra and the youki flared while both of his fists were pointed at Lee's fastly approaching body. His quickly descending body looked like it was on fire to everyone, mainly because of youki and his extremely fast velocity before he yelled-

"**AKUMA NO RAIKOU KOBUSHI: RYUSEI KOKUSUKURYU! **(Demonic Lightning Fist: Corkscrew Meteor)", all of this combo had happened in a span of 2-3 seconds in front of naked eyes before Naruto's fist came in contact with Lee's body, the green taijutsu genin spitting blood due to painful blow before they began to descend at the ground level at extremely high speeds resulting in a violent crash shaking the cores of the arena.

BOOM!

Such was the impact of their crash that large chunks of Earth flew out of the smoke due to the impact, while everyone had to shield their eyes from the debris, it felt like an earthquake had struck. A along with Bee had their jaws on the ground, it was the most lethal taijutsu move that they had ever seen! They could only hope that the green kid was alive.

'_Such destructive move, but Lee should pull out. He's had worse than this in his training'_, thought an impressed Gai, he was a bit sad that his student lost as he knew there was no way he was coming out of that in fighting condition but not everyday you get to see an attack like this and from a genin all the more. Gaara had an astonished look on his face, he now himself was doubting if he would be able to beat his fellow jinchuriki. Shukaku had told him Naruto was the host of Kyuubi No Kitsune when Naruto was releasing Ayumi's chakra, much to the shock of the sand user.

'_Naruto, what the...'_, thought copy ninja, not even able to think properly at the moment, while Sasuke had a look of extreme frustration and hate, his teeth gritted and fists clenched by his side. Sakura, Kin, Temari and Ino had looks of awe & admiration on their faces. Asuma's cigarette had fallen from his mouth in shock, which was in way much more shocking for his team and fellow jounins as his cigarette was just like Omoi's lollipop to him. The ice queens had a look of utter surprise on their faces just like Mei, Yugito & Samui.

Meanwhile the smoke cleared out for them to see a barely conscious, bruised and tattered body of Lee, almost like he was embedded in the crater while a panting Naruto could be seen standing beside him while blood was seeping from his mouth before he deactivated his doujutsu, the red chakra as well as lightning chakra no longer present. Hayate had an astonished look on his face when he saw Naruto.

'_He can still stand after that attack?'_, thought the proctor before slowly approaching them as he had distanced himself from the crazy fight that was covering the whole arena.

'_Damn! That attack took a lot out of me, good thing I held back or else he would've been killed, but still this move was tougher than I thought. Guess it's not the same as memorising the attack than actually doing it. I still need to go a long way, if I find an opponent as fast as Lee my entire ninjutsu arsenal is almost useless, I'll have to increase the speed of handseals. But still, I never thought I'd find someone as strong as Lee in these exams, except maybe Gaara to give me such a hard time'_, he thought while inwardly sighing to himself before he bend besides Lee who was barely conscious and in a whole lot of pain.

"T-That...w-was a g-gre-great fight... N-Naruto-kun", said Lee with a small smile while coughing painfully, his one eye closed while almost half of his face was covered in blood. Naruto was going to bonk him on the head if not for his injuries for being so reckless and going as far as opening the fifth gate.

"Why...why did you go so far you idiot? You knew that you would progress to the finals with the skills you displayed...then why, why did you put your body to risk? I didn't want to use this move on you, it's very lethal & destructive, but with you using the fifth gate I had to do it", said Naruto apologetically while Hayate was standing near them, hearing their conversation with interest whereas Lee just offered him a pained smile. Inwardly smacking his head, Naruto started applying his special chakra on his body leading to the drastic reduction of pain while Lee's eyes just widened but he didn't ask anything, seeing what Naruto was pulling today he could believe almost anything. He wasn't an idiot, though he acted like one, but still he wasn't an idiot.

"Hehe...just for the same reason as you Naruto-kun. I... wanted recognition, wanting to prove...myself to the world...that I can be a good shinobi...with just taijutsu", he said , still in pain but much less than before while Naruto's eyes widened.

'_Bushy brow...'_

"Heh, you baka! You're already very strong, you're strongest opponent I could've gotten here", he said while grinning whereas moisture gathered in Lee's eyes who grinned back at him.

"Arigato Naruto-kun...from now on...you're my eternal rival", he said before passing out while Naruto just sweatdropped before chuckling to himself.

"Yeah, but that's something I don't look forward to", he said, still chuckling to himself while remembering the famed Kakashi-Gai rivalry of Konoha and the ridiculous challenges of Gai. Hayate just smiled at their exchange, the will of fire burned brightly in those two and if he knew any better, they definitely deserved the title of chunin.

"WINNER: UZUMAKI NARUTO!", he yelled while instead of some cheers which Hayate expected, there was just stunned silence. No one could still come out of their respective shocks, this fight was something else. It had easily crossed the boundaries of a genin level fight. Meanwhile Naruto just blinked before he stood up. He was so focused in the match that he forgot to see their shocked faces, but now he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

"WHAT? I THINK WE FOUGHT JUST FINE TO DESERVE SOME CLAPPING DIDN'T WE?", yelled Naruto for everyone to hear while giving his foxy grin breaking everyone out of their shocks, some of them blushing in embarrassment (What? You expect Gai to have a blush on his face?) and began clapping for him. The medics came before carefully putting Lee on the stretcher and leaving the arena while Naruto bowed dramatically to them. Upon seeing the names starting to flash randomly he walked slowly to the elevated platform, ignoring the looks of shock and chose to stand alone for a while, avoid the questions he knew would be coming and just observe the matches.

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: One Hour Later<strong>

* * *

><p>Naruto was bored out of his mind, currently the secondly last had just finished. After his fight, the only match he found a bit interesting was ' Shino vs. Gaara vs. Yoroi' which was right after his match, but that too was quickly over as he deduced that Yoroi was a chakra leecher so the moment he tried to absorb Gaara's chakra, he also absorbed some of the youki. The results was immediate as he screamed in agony before slipping into unconsciousness, Shino too couldn't do much with his insects as they were not able to absorb Gaara's harmful chakra, though the bug user did try everything he could but he just couldn't penetrate Gaara's sand defence. So in the end, Gaara was going to kill him but Shino being the smart self immediately forfeit the match, but that didn't stop the jinchuriki from trying to kill him with his <strong>Sabaku Sousou <strong>(Desert Funeral), however the timely intervention from the jounins saved the bug user's ass.

The next two matches were even more boring. After Gaara's match, the next match was-'Shikamaru vs. Temari vs. Ino', but he was interested at first as to how they would fight their own teammates. He was surprised to see the determination in Ino's eyes though, he knew that look, it was of wanting prove herself. Though she didn't last much longer in the match due to her limited arsenal, but she did put up a good fight. So in the end, Shikamaru lost, although barely as Temari too was exhausted due to using her wind attacks one after another. The arena being open spaced, Shikamaru couldn't stall the fight to prepare some strategy so he was forced to fight head-on. The lazy ass never being the front line fighter, still gave trouble to Temari by manipulating the shadows of the elevated platform, the proctor or whatever he could use for his advantage. Though Naruto was surprised that the Nara was actually, for once taking something seriously but at last, Temari was the winner.

The next match was-'Tenten vs. Sakura vs. Kin'. He had thought that Sakura would be immediately eliminated, but to his and almost everybody's immense shock who knew her, she was able to hold her own mainly by using genjutsus. Naruto had turned his head questionably towards Kakashi to find him eye-smiling back at him. He immediately understood what was going on there.

'_I still can't believe he was secretly training all three of us'_, he thought while chuckling to himself, his sensei had somewhat, awkward methods of training, but he wasn't complaining after seeing the results. But due to her low chakra reserves, she was the first one to lose before it came down to just Kin & Tenten. Both of them being long range fighters, the match dragged on but Kin surprised Tenten by suddenly engaging her in taijutsu in a burst of speed and ultimately the sound kunoichi came out as winner. Although Naruto wasn't surprised much, considering she was matching Sasuke toe to toe in their little fight in the rest room.

Which brings us to the current situation and the last match, where the only contestants remaining were the emo king and some other sound genin whose name Naruto didn't know.

"Would Uchiha Sasuke & Tsuruga Misumi step down please?", said Hayate while coughing. Sasuke had a frown on his face, the fight of Naruto still replaying in his head before he jumped down followed by Misumi.

"Alright, now as you know the matches are supposed to contain three contestants and the current situation presents us only two. So... is there anyone else willing to have another go, it may add up to your credit in the finals", said Hayate, still coughing while Sasuke's eyes widened before a cocky smirk settled on his face.

"You, fight me dobe!", he said, grabbing the opportunity while glaring at Naruto who merely raised his eyebrows.

"No", said Naruto calmly while Sasuke clenched his fists.

"What? Are you scared dobe?", asked the Uchiha with a cocky smirk hoping to rile up his teammate while Naruto just replied him back calmly.

"No, or did you forget how I kicked your ass in the forest", Sasuke gritted his teeth while Kin & Ino snickered at the remark.

"Fight me loser!", he yelled in frustration, his Sharingan activated while Naruto just shook his head. Meanwhile everyone was watching this scene going on with amusement & interest before a smirk settled on Sasuke's face.

"I'd bet your parents were just like you, scared and weak ne?", he said with a smirk while Naruto perked at the remark, his temper quickly rising to the surface, barely able to control his rage.

".Uchiha", he growled while clenching his fists, which were white from the pressure while the ice queens seemed to emitting killer intent which our poor Uchiha wasn't able to detect.

"And I bet you mother was a weak slut and probably died as a whore", he said, his smirk growing, the poor bastard unaware of the danger that was lurking below him.

'_Uh oh'_, thought Hiruzen, pitying the Uchiha. While he himself wanted to kick the genin's ass for that comment, he knew Naruto would do a better job. The moment Sasuke had finished his sentence, the whole arena was overcome with a strong wave of killing intent, so strong that even Orochimaru was sweating. Apparently it seemed that the killer intent radar of our last Uchiha was off, as he couldn't feel anything while his smirk grew but it faltered when Naruto just vanished from his sight.

"Start the **match proctor**", said Naruto as his voice changed to that of a demonic one while Sasuke turned his head to see Naruto, whose eyes were red (Rinnegan deactivated) with slitted black pupil, his whisker marks more defined, his hair spikier than before, his fangs and nails elongated which overall gave him a demonic appearance. Meanwhile Hayate gulped at the ridiculous amount of killing intent that Naruto was emitting whereas poor Misugi was buckling on his knees, sweat pouring down his forehead as prayed to Kami to let him come out this alive.

'_Kami, atleast spare his Sharingan'_, thought an uncharacteristic Orochimaru, who had doubts if Sasuke's body would be usable enough for him after the match.

* * *

><p><strong>So, did you like it? I really put my all in the Naruto-Lee fight and I hope it was good and better than Hinata's. Oooh, I myself can't wait to write the ass kicking that Sasuke-teme's gonna get! And also, I just wanted to ask you guys if you want Sara from the fourth movie in the harem as there have been way too many requests for that. So please don't hesitate to review and tell how you liked this chapter. Until next time! Ja ne!<strong>

**N6023**


	11. The Cursed Move

**Hey guys, thanks for all the reviews in the previous chapter. Also, according to the votes, Sara from the fourth movie is in harem. Also, I wanted to thank TheDemonKingNaruto & Namikaze09 for helping with ideas and such! Also check out my updated profile, stating Naruto's current level of skill and other things. So here's the next chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Ch-11- A Cursed Move<strong>

* * *

><p>"Start the <strong>match proctor<strong>", said Naruto as his voice changed to that of a demonic one while Sasuke turned his head to see Naruto, whose eyes were red (Rinnegan deactivated) with slitted black pupil, his whisker marks more defined, his hair spikier than before, his fangs and nails elongated which overall gave him a demonic appearance. Meanwhile Hayate gulped at the ridiculous amount of killing intent that Naruto was emitting whereas poor Misugi was buckling on his knees, sweat pouring down his forehead as he prayed to Kami to let him come out this alive.

'_Kami, atleast spare his Sharingan'_, thought an uncharacteristic Orochimaru, who had doubts if Sasuke's body would be usable enough for him after the match.

'_Sasuke...how dare you call Kushina-sama that!'_, thought the furious copy ninja, angry at his student for unknowingly insulting such a legend, and someone he looked up to besides his sensei. Meanwhile, Sakura was also angry at Sasuke for his comment about Naruto's parents. She had come to admire & respect her blonde teammate, and didn't like someone insulting him. Even though it was Sasuke, she couldn't help but feel that slowly she was coming to dislike Sasuke.

'_That bastard, son of a bi-. No, sorry Mikoto-sama. That motherfuc-... No, again sorry Mikoto-sama. That asshole! Yeah! How dare he insult Kushina-nee like that, I'll make sure to have our dogs feast on him'_, thought Hana while gritting her teeth, barely restraining herself, she wanted nothing more than to rip the Uchiha to shreds right now and burn his remaining parts to ash in the hottest flames of hell! While the other Ice queens could barely control their anger & killing intent, but a glare from Hiruzen kept them in place. However they were helpful that the ridiculous amount of killing intent was not directed at them. But they were surprised that the Uchiha could even stand under such killing intent that Naruto was emanating.

'_You should thank me Sasuke-kun, it's because of curse seal that I triggered partially that you're able to withstand such killing intent'_, thought Orochimaru with a smirk, but now he was more interested in the jinchuriki himself than the Uchiha. With the power of Rinnegan & the strongest bijuu, he would be unbeatable!

Meanwhile, A, Mei and their companions had deep frowns etched on their faces, that was a low blow indeed, but in the world of shinobi everything was fair. They were also surprised by the stupidity of the supposed 'last Uchiha', pulling a stunt like that after seeing what the blonde jinchuriki was capable of was just suicidal.

Even Sasuke was becoming nervous by seeing Naruto's demonic features, as were all the genins, who didn't have any idea what was going on.

'_Control yourself Naruto, you can't lose it here'_, thought Kakashi with a straight face, while inwardly he was worried for both of his students, worried for Sasuke that he may get killed and for Naruto that the council may take charges against his actions, and the fact that he was releasing Kyuubi's chakra here. On the other hand, Gaara was becoming excited at the feeling of bloodlust floating in the air, while he was feeling something, something he was not familiar with. But that was anger, he was confused, mainly towards the Uchiha for insulting Naruto's mother.

'_Uzumaki's mother wants your blood Uchiha, mine too'_, thought Gaara, in of those absurd psychotic moments of his. Kin was feeling angry and was emitting her own killing intent along with Ino & Temari, however that was being dwarfed by Naruto's right then.

Ignoring his instincts who were telling him to hide in the Uchiha compound and never come out, he settled into his clan's taijutsu stance, an arrogant smirk etched on his face. While Naruto just stood there, his blood red eyes glued on Sasuke whereas Tsuruga just raised his hand.

"Proctor, I forfeit!", said the sound nin anxiously, wanting to stay away from the angry blonde, while Hayate just raised his eyebrows.

"Are you sure?", he asked but only got a nod in return.

"Alright, you can stand with the others now or leave the arena", he informed while Sasuke watched the leaving nin with satisfaction, the idiot thinking that it was because he didn't want to face an Uchiha.

'_Smart move'_, thought Kurenai along with many others, referring to Misumi as she thought it was better to stay away from Naruto right now.

"Are you guys ready?", asked the sick proctor, while Sasuke just nodded, more confident in himself than ever because of the forfeit whereas Naruto just stood there like a stone, like he was in a trance like state and was only staring at Sasuke with barely restrained anger, never having said a word since he landed on the floor.

"Hajime!", yelled Hayate before jumping back from the two while the floor just cracked under the pressure of Naruto's feet, his demonic features more defined and an even higher killing intent washed upon the arena in waves.

"**Attack me with all you got Uchiha, I'll show the power you so desire**", said Naruto in demonic tone, reverberating throughout the arena. Meanwhile Sasuke was becoming more nervous by the second, not sure what the hell was going on here.

'_What is he? And what is that red chakra flowing through his coils with a small mixture of white?'_, thought the Uchiha, for the first time thinking reasonably since the beginning of second part of the chunin exams. But he quickly composed himself, wanting to show the loser his place and that he's much stronger than these pathetic so-called genins.

'_What! Why isn't he just clobbering the Uchiha brat'_, thought Yugao & Mei, surprised that Naruto just didn't attacked head front. Since he was in so much anger, they were expecting him to just pierce through the stuck up brat.

"Your funeral dobe", said a smirking Sasuke before throwing several kunai & shuriken at Naruto who just tilted his head while swatting the remaining weapons with a kunai, all the while keeping his bloody demonic gaze on the Uchiha, angering the rookie of the year even more.

"You think you're so tough huh!", said Sasuke, angry that a low life such as this loser was showing him in front of almost every accomplished jounin in the village and the kages, before he dashed towards Naruto at high genin speeds. Naruto would've yawned if he wasn't angry, seeing that the Uchiha was taking forever to reach him, especially when he had fought an opponent as fast as Lee who was in the celestial gate mode.

Upon reaching him, Sasuke threw combos of punches & kicks as fast & as hard as he could, but to no avail as Naruto seemed to just dodge these attacks with ease, all the while his eyes staring at the frustrated eyes of the Uchiha.

'_He's toying with me!'_, thought Sasuke, his frustration rising so much that his attacks began to become sloppy and unsynchronised.

"STAY STILL SO I CAN BEAT YOU!", he yelled as Naruto ducked under his kick. Naruto, seeing as how unpredictable he was surprised everyone by complying to Sasuke's wish and didn't dodge the next punch aimed for his cheek. When his fist connected with his cheek, Naruto only took a step back from the blow while his face was facing in the opposite direction of Sasuke due to impact of the blow.

"Hn, are you hurt dobe? Don't worry, I'll go easy on you from now on", said Sasuke with smirk, oh the limits of his foolishness. Much to the surprise of the genins, Naruto turned his head back before spitting the blood on the floor, apparently unharmed with only a small bruise on his cheek. His face emotionless, blue eyes which usually held mirth and mischievousness in them were now icy red.

"**Is that all you've got Uchiha?**", asked Naruto, further angering Sasuke who had just gotten out of his shock.

'_That would've been a knockout punch for any other normal genin'_, thought Anko, inwardly grinning perversely at thought of Naruto's lean muscular frame, oh the possibilities!

"Shut up loser!", Sasuke went through a couple of familiar handseals before releasing a larger fireball, pouring much more chakra in the jutsu than before. The larger than normal fireball appoached Naruto at high speeds but to the horror of everyone he just stood there.

"NARUTO MOVE OUT!", yelled Sakura, however years of experience told Kakashi that the blonde enigma was going to pull something extraordinary down there. Meanwhile Naruto just put his right palm towards the ghastly approaching fireball, his expression still as emotionless as before with his eyes fixed, as if they were piercing through the fireball to gaze dangerously upon Sasuke.

"**Shinra Tensei**", he whispered quietly to himself and to the much, much shock of everyone, the fireball disintegrated into small sparks of fire as if the arena was filled with fireflies. It was a beautiful sight to behold, and the others would've recognised it if not for their shock induced states.

'_Holy mommy of icha-icha/taijutsu/lava/Byakugan/A-Ao-sempai/coolness/sex/lolli-chan/Omoi/ponta/Sharingan/torture/genjutsu/ pups/kenjutsu/blood/fate/Sasuke-kun/barbeque/smoky-chan/flames of youth/sound/snakessss!'_, thought Hiruzen, A, Mei, Ao, Choujiro, Samui, Nibi, Omoi,Bee, Sasuke & Kakashi, Anko, Kurenai, Hana, Yugao, Gaara, Neji, Sakura, Chouji, Asuma, Gai, Kin and finally our lovely Orochimaru simultaneously, all of their jaws on the ground, suddenly the gravity seemed to increase too much to pick their jaws.

'_I've n-never...ever seen s-someone do this to a ninjutsu in my entire c-career'_, thought a shaken Hayate.

"**My turn...teme**", said Naruto before his traces vanished from the reaches of the almighty Sharingan, while Sasuke looked furiously around himself for any sign of his rival, or enemy. Naruto appeared in front of Sasuke to deliver a hardcore punch to his stomach, the Uchiha spitting some blood while Naruto twisted his fist at the point of impact.

"**How does it feel Uchiha?**", said Naruto before again blurring out of Sasuke's vision , delivering a spinning kick after appearing behind him sending the rookie flying towards the wall like a comet whose ass is on fire. Just as Sasuke was about to crash, Naruto appeared near the wall before delivery a handstand uppercut kick on his jaw leading to the Uchiha getting airborne . Sasuke was in a whole world pain right now, his right eye was swollen black which was closed, blood seeping from his mouth while his left cheek was swollen too along with multiple bruises on his face, all in all his fangirls would have puked if they would've seen him in this condition. His stomach was still hurting from that monstrous punch, leading to him having fits of cough. The world around him spinning while his brain couldn't register anything. Small chirping imaginary birds were flowing around his head while his thoughts were along the line-

'_Hehehe, Itachi-chan is such a good brother, I love him... Happy Birthday!'_, thought the pretty fucked up Uchiha, his brain not on the right track before he was sent flying towards the hard concrete floor, courtesy of an angry Naruto's leg drop. Sasuke crashed violently on the ground before Naruto landed near him. Grabbing his ankle, he hurled the Uchiha like he was an empty ramen bowl towards the only craterless wall. Sasuke was sent spiralling towards the wall like a shuriken before he got stuck in the crater because of his collision, debris and chunks of cemented wall flying in all directions.

'_Kami, how can he possess so much strength'_, thought a stupefied Kin, but on the other hand was satisfied by the answer the Uchiha got because of the insult. Naruto was in front of an unconscious Sasuke in a flash, his eyes glowing red as pushed Sasuke further into the wall by grabbing his neck.

"**NEVER"**, paused Naruto before punching him in the stomach.

"**EVER"**, punch!

"**INSULT"**, punch!

"**MY",** punch!

"**KAA-SAN! GOT THAT TEME!"**, punch! Each time Sasuke being embedded further into the wall while blood soaked out of mouth like a blood canal, all the genins wincing at the brutality of the attacks. But Naruto wasn't finished as he reared his fist, now crackling with electricity.

"Stop it! The match is over Naruto-san, he's already unconscious, you won now", said a coughing Hayate but it fell on deaf ears.

"NARUTO STOP IT! THAT'S ENOUGH", yelled Sakura while the others too thought that there was no need to further injure the already unconscious Uchiha, he was taking it too far. But the blonde jinchuriki couldn't hear anyone's shouts, too flooded with anger to see the pitiful condition of Sasuke.

"**RRRAAAAHHHHHHH!**", gave Naruto a battle cry as his lightning charged fist approached Sasuke's face, behind him you could see Hayate & the other jounins dashing towards now seemingly out-of-control Naruto, but they knew that they wouldn't be able to reach him in time.

'_Oh, and if possible take care of Sasuke Naruto-kun'_, remembered Naruto, the words of Itachi as he visioned the pleading look in his eyes, the eyes of a big brother.

To everyone's surprise, his deathly fist just stopped inches away from Sasuke's face which was difficult to recognise now, the jounins & Hayate too stopped. His fists trembling, barely resisting the urge to just wipe the nuisance called Uchiha Sasuke from the face of the planet, while he was panting heavily. The lightning covering his fist slowly disintegrated, his eyes turned to blue before he grabbed Sasuke by his collar before roughly throwing him behind him, not turning his head. Hayate catched the Uchiha before quickly calling for medics, looking at the wounded Sasuke with disgust in his eyes. To be honest, the coughing proctor was somewhat himself pleased with the beating the Uchiha got.

Nobody was worried for Sasuke except maybe Sakura & Kakashi, but they were mainly concerned for the blonde, seeing him lose control like that made them somewhat worry.

"KUSO!", yelled Naruto in frustration as he punched a hole in the wall, bangs covering his eyes while he gritted his teeth.

"Oi gaki, are you alright?", asked Anko, expressing her concern under a mask of indifference while Naruto didn't respond. Tears slowly streamed down his face, his bangs still covering his eyes. Now the anger was gone, he was emotionally feeling frustrated. That insult, a painful reminder of that he would never see his parents, or he wondered if he would even know his father's name or hear about them.

'_She's never...coming back...Kaa-san...I just want to see you once...please...please...please. IS IT TOO MUCH TO ASK!'_, he screamed in his head as more tears seemed to leak out but he quickly wiped them with his hands when he felt someone approaching, not wanting to be seen as weak in front of everyone. He turned his head to see the proctor for the second exams walking towards him slowly, expecting to see a face of indifference or pity, he was shocked to see deep concern & worry for him in her eyes, even though her face was that of indifference. Meanwhile other jounins were busy in carefully lifting the Uchiha, seeing as they wanted to be seen as good in front of the council & the villagers for caring for the last Uchiha.

"Are you...alright Naru-kun?", she asked in a much lower tone than before, so that no one could hear her besides Naruto, while Naruto himself was panting a bit due to exhaustion because of his fight with Lee and now his damn so called 'teammate'.

'_Again, she's calling me Naru-kun'_, he thought with a surprised face, but quickly composed himself. If she cared for him and didn't hate him for Ayumi, then he wasn't going to let go of any opportunity for making new friends.

"I'm...alright...Anko-san...you don't need to...worry for me", he said while panting, giving her a small weak smile. Anko's heart clenched at seeing someone she loved so much in so much pain, while the Kurenai, Hana & Yugao were with other jounins pretending that they cared for Uchiha, although their eyes had never left Naruto as they were worried sick for him.

Just as Anko was going to approach him to give him a hand as he seemed to be tired as well as emotionally drained, her eyes widened when she saw something or someone behind Naruto coming out of the wall, that haunted her in her worse nightmares even now.

"NARUTO LOOK OUT!", she screamed startling everyone in the arena while Naruto just looked at her in confusion, "What d-", he paused when he felt pain on his side neck, his eyes widened in surprise before he started screaming in pain, further startling everyone. Behind Naruto, you could see Orochimaru's neck protruding out of the wall while his sharp fangs came out of the Naruto's skin on the side neck.

"YOU BASTARD!", screamed Anko as she dashed full speed towards the snake sanin, behind her you could see Hiruzen ready in battle gear already dashing towards the wall with A & Mei. Naruto continued to scream while he clutched his neck in pain whereas Orochimaru started to withdraw back into the wall like the snake he was.

"It was good to see you Anko-chan", said a chuckling Orochimaru, his voice becoming distant just as Anko reached the wall and punched it as hard as she could, creating a large crater but no sign of the snake sannin. Even though A's speed was said to be on par with the Yondaime Hokage, he was still too far to reach there in time to catch the sanin.

"Shit! ALL OF YOU EXCEPT THE JOUNIN SENSEI, SPREAD OUT AND SEARCH FOR OROCHIMARU! INFORM ALL STATIONS TO START SEARCHING FOR HIM! CLOSE ALL THE EXITS AND MAKE SURE NO ONE GETS OUT OF THE VILLAGE UNTIL THE SEARCH IS FINISHED! MOVE OUT!", he said while all the jounins chorused a "Hai" before disappearing in blurs. Even though Hana & Yugao didn't want to leave Naruto, they had to follow the Hokage's orders.

'_Curse you Orochimaru! What are you planning now? First the Uchiha & now Naruto-kun'_, thought Hiruzen angry at himself that Orochimaru was able to sneak among so many jounins and kages and pull this stunt.

'_Please be okay Naruto-kun, you can't die on us...I haven't even told you who I am'_, thought Hana & Yugao simultaneously, glancing at his screaming form worriedly before shunshining out of the arena. Meanwhile, Anko hurriedly moved to give a clean chop to Naruto's back neck rendering him unconscious putting stop to his screams and caught him in her arms.

"Anko! Why did you do that?", asked Kurenai while Anko replied without looking at her, gazing at Naruto's neck on which a black curse just like Sasuke's was forming slowly.

"If he stays unconscious and moves, the curse mark will spread faster. Hokage-sama, we have to hurry to the hospital", said Anko while gritting her teeth.

'_That bastard used his damn camouflage to sneak among us and used the opportunity like the snake he is. Orochimaru, first you destroy my life and now you're planning to do this to Naru-kun aren't you? As long as I'm breathing, you wouldn't be able to touch even a speck of his blonde hair...GODDAMN IT!'_, she thought before slamming her fist on the side wall, creating a small crater while a sweating Naruto, his body cold was still in her arms.

"Hurry up and go Anko, his skin is becoming pale", ordered Hiruzen while Anko immediately shunshined out of the arena.

'_I hope he is alright'_, thought Yugito, worried about the blonde jinchuriki. _'Ofcourse he would be alright kitten, but first we have to find that snake bastard for doing that to our mate'_, said Nibi inside Yugito while she nodded, _'WAIT! What do you mean 'our' mate? I don't even know him'._

'_Then get to know him kitten & do it fast. Cause I can't wait to feel the immense pleasure that I know he will provide us'_, growled Nibi with lust while Yugito's blush deepened to that of Hinata's shade.

'_Be safe cool guy'_, thought our typical Samui, angry at the sanin. She didn't knew the blonde jinchuriki that much, but as far as she'd seen him, he was definitely in her 'cool things' list and she wanted to know him better. Even though he was a jinchuriki, and the way he was treated he still remained upbeat, was compassionate to his friends and his goals, gave it his all, had a cheery personality but could become dead serious in a second if the situation called for it. All in all, he was the first guy in which she was even remotely interested. He had something which other males didn't have. These were the same things that urged Mei, almost subconsciously to get to know him better.

She didn't know why, but felt strangely worried along with a pang in her chest when she heard his painful cries. Almost all her life, she didn't had time to pursue any romantic relationship. First she was busy in her training and mastering her bloodline, then the unstable state of Bloodline wars in Kiri where she was the leader of the rebellion group gave her no time for these things. But he was the first to catch her interest. True she flirted with almost anyone, though not with perverts, but that was mainly because she enjoyed embarrassing others. But he was different, that charming smile of his...oh god...it made something flutter in her body. She didn't know what it was, but was eager to find out.

"Hokage-dono, we would also like to aid your shinobi in finding that bastard! He's an international wanted criminal after all", said A, barely containing his anger while Mei nodded with him. He had come to like the gaki's attitude and the way he handled things, but to attack from behind, when someone was at its weakest, he truly was a wretched snake.

"As you wish, Raikage-dono, Mizukage-dono", said Hiruzen while A & Mei ordered their respective groups to aid the other shinobi in their search, before they all shunshined out of the arena.

'_Kukuku, I'm sure you'll like my parting gift Naruto-kun. But for now, both of you are enough, I'll think about the Hyuuga heiress later on'_, thought Orochimaru while he blurred past an unknown location.

Meanwhile, all the remaining genins were awestruck at the events that took place here. Although some of them had lost their respective matches, but with first aid their physical condition was stable so they had opted to remain and watch the matches, to analyse their possible opponent's techniques and fighting styles.

'_Naruto...'_, thought Sakura as moisture gathered in her eyes, now both of her teammates had that curse mark.

'_That asshole! I'll never forgive you Orochi-teme. Naruto-kun, please be alright'_, Kin thought while Temari's & Ino's thoughts were along the same line as they prayed for Naruto's safety.

"Hokage-sama, may I go to the hospital to check up on Naruto's condition. Hinata needs treatment too", Hiruzen turned around to find Kurenai bowing in front of him on one knee, her head down while curly locks of black hair shadowed her face. Though her voice was as cold as usual, he knew she was worried sick for Naruto and was barely restraining herself from just following Anko right then.

"Hai, you can...", the moment he had said 'hai', Kurenai was out of the arena with Hinata, not allowing him to complete the sentence.

"Alright, listen everybody, for now all of you can leave except your sensei and rest. You will be called after two days for the results of the preliminaries, but know this that the third stage of the exams will occur after a month from now, so you can start your training immediately while your opponents will probably be announced in two days", he said while everyone, who were shaken by the current events going on nodded without hesitation and left the arena. Meanwhile, Kin, Temari, Ino & Sakura couldn't help but think how the blonde who had impacted their lives to the deepest levels was fairing right then.

"Hokage-sama, can I-", started Kakashi only to be interrupted by Hiruzen, "NO Kakashi! You can't check up on Naruto-kun right now. Remember that Sasuke has the curse seal too, so we need you to guard him and when he wakes up, you will have to seal that mark. But in case of Naruto... two seals on his body can give rise of complications. Jiraiya will arrive here in a day or two, so I'll have him look into this matter. So right now, you have to guard Sasuke's room and report any abnormalities you may find. Is that understood?", asked Hiruzen in his authoritative tone while Kakashi offered a quiet 'hai' before shunshining out of the area.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's General Hospital<strong>

* * *

><p>The receptionist was quietly working herself to the ground. The reason, these damn punky weak genins just kept getting injured or dying in the chunin exams, and although that was not a healthy spirit she had, but she was tired of this paperwork. However she was startled by a sudden poof of smoke, almost making her fall backwards with her chair.<p>

"Orders of Hokage-sama! We need to treat him, NOW!", came a frantic voice when the receptionist saw just who was talking to her, or just who needed treatment. She would've sneered at them if not for the murderous glare and a heavy killing intent that was emitting out of the torture specialist jounin. Those eyes clearly said, 'One wrong move, and you'll spend the rest of your days as my play toy in the Torture & Interrogation cell ." By now, all the nearby doctors, patients, the receptionist and the nurses were having trouble breathing or even standing for that matter.

"R-Right. Hey you! Get your ass over here!", she called frantically, wanting to get them going as fast as possible. The doctor she had called looked towards her in shock, she had never spoken like that to him and had always respected him. But he quickly ignored that, seeing that Ibiki's apprentice was standing there, glaring at you would make any normal civilian soil themselves or change their personalities quickly.

"And forget the stretcher! I don't trust anyone of you! Just tell me the room. AND HURRY THE FUCK UP YOU PANSIES!", yelled Anko, her frustration reaching to her as she felt Naruto convulsing restlessly in pain, his eyes shut painfully, his skin now more pale than before while the said doctor cowered under her intense gaze before he quickly led her to a vacant room and in the process called several doctors with him for the treatment, who were inwardly cursing him for dragging them into this. The doctor knew that he had never ran so fast in his life, and he never thought he would have to do that for the 'demon boy' or the 'snake whore' for that.

While the doctors began their check up on the blonde jinchuriki, one of them came and asked Anko to wait outside the room, but she knew about their shallow tricks. All the years of watching over Naruto, she, Yugao, Hana & Kurenai knew almost all of their bloody methods of torturing Naruto.

"I'm taking none of that shit! What, you expect me to just puke like a shallow civilian while you do your work! I've seen & done worse than what you do during operations, so I'm gonna stay here! Do you have a problem you geezer?", she said in a threatening tone leading to the doctor sweating bullets, as that was just the thing they were planning to do. When the demon brat was at 'it's' weakest, they could just kill him but now, with her watching their every move, who knew about every part of human anatomy as she was the chief head of the of Interrogation & Torture department, they had to treat this...demon incarnation 'properly'. So begrudgingly, they began their work, some of them being medic nins under the watchful eye of Anko.

Meanwhile Kurenai had just reached the hospital with Hinata in her arms. Seeing that she was a prodigy jounin along with the Hyuuga heiress, they were immediately shown the room with a red carpet. After seeing that Hinata was apparently alright, she immediately asked for Naruto's room, which she had to do with a bit of threatening related to horrible genjutsus and all.

Upon reaching the room, she saw Anko standing in the room with her arms across her chest while the medics were treating Naruto as fast as they could. Although her face seemed to be calm on the outside, Kurenai knew there was a raging whirlwind inside , ready to explode at the first signs of Orochimaru. Quietly walking up to her, she put her hand on her shoulder.

"Anko...", she trailed while Anko immediately jerked her hand off startling the genjutsu mistress before turning around," WHAT DO Yo...", she trailed when she realised that it was Kurenai.

"Oh...Kurenai-chan...I'm sorry", she said bowing her head a little while offering her long time friend a weak smile, making Kurenai more worried. One, because Anko never uses her full name, and two, she never shows her true self in public places such as this.

"Anko...don't worry, he'll pull out of this. You know he's had worse than this. But...how is he doing now?", she asked while putting a caring hand on Anko's shoulder.

"His condition...has stabilised a bit", she said while closing her eyes, " Th...That bastard!", she spat while clenching her fists by her side so hard that they were white from the pressure and were trembling with rage.

"First, he...first he destroys my life and now..", she breathed calmly to stop the quivering in her voice while clenching her eyes tightly, "He does ...this to Naruto-kun", she said with a quivering voice, unable to stop the tremor in her usually loud & confident tone while lowering her head, her fists tightly clenched by her side. Applying a weak genjutsu over them so that it looked like they were just standing next to each other to the passerby's as well as the medics, she quickly hugged one of her best friends.

"Shshhh, don't worry Anko-chan, his time will come too...let it all out", said Kurenai as she rubbed Anko's back soothingly while the snake mistress's head was buried in Kurenai's shoulder, before she started sobbing quietly. Her sobs muffled as she buried her head on her friend's shoulders while Kurenai rubbed her back soothingly. Kurenai turned her head to see a now stabilized Naruto although his skin was still a pale shade.

"We have done all that we could. He is somewhat stable than before but we don't know when he would wake up", said one of the medics as he bowed to the seemingly 'standing' Kurenai, glaring at Anko before walking out with the rest of the medics.

* * *

><p><strong>Naruto's Mindscape<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>That BASTARD! Shit! He used that moment to his advantage and put that freaking curse mark on me too. I knew the asshole was a gay!'<em>, thought Naruto in anger with a hint of bitterness, wanting to puke at the thought of the gay sanin. As his anger & frustration subsided, he finally took a look around him, seeing the same lush trees, waterfalls and some nature thingies which he had visited so many times in the past few days.

'_Ah, thank Kami….Maybe Ayumi-chan will know what to do. But-'_, his thoughts were interrupted when a huge wave of red chakra washed over the forest effectively making him fly back.

"Ahhh! What the….. hell was that?", he exclaimed while holding his head, it was like a sudden sparking pain had engulfed his head. Immediately standing up, he began walking down the familiar path.

Upon reaching the centre of the forest, he saw a glowing red figure of Ayumi sitting there cross legged in a meditative stance, her eyes closed, scrunched up in concentration while tendrils of red chakra were flowing around her, her furry nine tails flowing behind her animatedly. Her lose kimono which she had demanded after a while stating that the jounin gear was uncomfortable for her, was loosely hugging her body because of the wind created by her youki, showing off a bit of her cleavage making Naruto blush furiously. He almost drooled at the sight before shaking his head furiously while slapping his cheeks with both hands simultaneously.

'_I'm not a pervert! But still, they look so…..so….'_, even thinking about made his nose bleed a bit. Remembering his condition, he slowly wiped the blood before slowly approaching her.

"Ayumi-chan?", he said with uncertainity in his voice, not sure if he should disturb her of whatever she was doing, but he had to know, this was his body & mindscape after all. Hearing him, her ears perked up cutely.

"That curse mark…it's chakra is trying to take over your body", she said as beads of sweat rolled down her forehead while Naruto nodded with her grimly, "Hai, I figured that would happen".

"That snake bastard chose the best moment he could've gotten to give you the curse mark. Because you were at your weakest and were low on chakra, which I might add is very special and could've easily destroyed this curse seal. That's why I have to do the work, which I might again add that is not easy for me", she said, still not opening her eyes while Naruto sweatdropped, _'Yeah, you keep on adding while the snaky's chakra is fucking up with my body'_, he thought sarcastically before asking her.

"What do you mean it's difficult for you, you're the queen of all bijuus right?", he said while a slight smirk of pride settled on Ayumi's face.

"Of course I am, but since the seal is still strong, I cannot leak much of my youki to override the mechanisms of the curse seal. But I have to say that this curse seal did one thing good for us", she said while the red tendrils around her started to get voilent. Although her eyes were closed, she could still feel the confusion on Naruto's face.

"What I mean to say is that the curse mark is slowly eating away at the seal, and although it isn't powerful enough to be able to break the seal, but still it can damage atleast one-fourth of it, which…well you know it!", she said with a bit excitement in her voice at the last part while Naruto's eyes widened.

"Wow…..th-that's…that's amazing Ayumi-chan. Then we would be able contact each other telepathically, and you would be able to see and hear through me!", he said before jumping at her and hugged her tightly. Ayumi would've blushed furiously if not for the situation, but atleast she could still afford a bit of pink on her cheeks, couldn't she? She would've fallen back if not for her nine tails to support her as well as Naruto's wieght.

"Na-Naruto-kun! This is not the time, I'm still fighting the curse mark to prevent it from spreading here remember", she said, trying to look angry but couldn't help but enjoy the physical contact with her favourite blonde. His warm breath tickled her neck, sending shivers down her spine, making her remember the heated kiss they shared, darkening the shade of red on her cheeks.

"Ah! Gomen Ayumi-chan!", he jerked himself back bowing his head to hide the blush that was lingering on his cheeks, her curvy & plump assets felt soooo good!

"I-It's nothing. But know that it'll take some time for the seal to corrode effectively where I can force enough of my youki and destroy that purple chakra as well as the curse mark. So, it might take a day or two on the outside, which means it'll take more time in your mindscape due to time displacement", she said, a light blush still on her cheeks before concentrating on the task at hand.

"Alriiiiight...then. I guess I'll use the time to train then dattebayo!", he said, the usual glimmer in his oceanic blue eyes when it comes to training. A tic mark grew on Ayumi's forehead, while Naruto being the oblivious self, began to walk away for training when suddenly one of the Ayumi's tails grabbed his ankle before dragging him back to her.

"Ahhh! What are you doing Ayumi-chan?", he said quite so innocently while her eyebrows twitched in irritation and annoyance before she yanked him by his high collar of his trenchcoat.

"HOW DARE YOU THINK ABOUT TRAINING WHEN I'M BUSTING MY ASS HERE TO SAVE YOU!", she said with a murderous glare which truly justified her status of the strongest bijuu, leading to Naruto cowering like a genin in the hordes of kages.

"B-B-But...", he stuttered while her expression softened before she pouted with a teary expression, "You don't care about me, do you?", she said so innocently that Naruto had to restrain himself to just kiss the daylights out of her.

"AHH! No! No! Ofcourse not Ayumi-chan, I do care about you", he said frantically while Ayumi smirked inwardly, _'Hehe, always works'_, before her expression suddenly changed back to an extremely happy vixen.

"Good! Then sit with me while I kick that curse seal's ass!", she said while pumping her fists before pulling Naruto with her in the warm embrace of her nine tails. Not one to give up on training, Naruto sneakily created a shadow clone, and mentally commanding him to create several other clones and start training far off from the centre of the forest. The clone nodded before sneakily taking off to the other part of the forest.

'_Hehehe, gotta love the Kage Bunshin training'_, he thought while inwardly snickering to himself. Meanwhile, Ayumi sighed inwardly, _'He's just like you Kushina-chan, not one to ever give up on training'. _Immediately feeling quite comfortable in her warm furry embrace, Naruto began to fell asleep while Kyuubi continued to concentrate which was supposed to be a somewhat long & a tiring process.

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: Two Days: Konoha's General Hospital: Naruto's Room<strong>

* * *

><p>Slowly coming to consciousness, Naruto tried to open his eyes but the immediate exposure to light made him close his eyes shut. He could feel someone besides him, but the light sounds of snoring told him that heshe was asleep. Giving a grunt, he opened his eyes slowly while he could feel the one beside him also stir before a loud shout of excitement came for him/her.

"NARUTO-KUN!"

* * *

><p><strong>Soooo, did you like it? (Duh! Probably not!) I felt it was not that good compared to the previous chapters but still the plot had to progress and no flames please ( like- dude, you totally suck. How the hell did Orochimaru sneak in presence of so many jounins and kages and all). So please review and patiently wait for the next chapter (of course if you want to read it though). Take care!<strong>

**N6023!**


	12. The Swirling Reunion

**Hey guys! So here's the quick update you all have been yearning for. So with nothing else to explain, let's get on with the twelfth chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Ch-12-Reunion!<strong>

**Timeskip: Two Days: Konoha's General Hospital: Naruto's Room**

* * *

><p>Slowly coming to consciousness, Naruto tried to open his eyes but the immediate exposure to light made him close his eyes shut. He could feel someone besides him, but the light sounds of snoring told him that heshe was asleep. Giving a grunt, he opened his eyes slowly while he could feel the one beside him also stir before a loud feminine shout of excitement came from her.

"NARUTO-KUN!"

Immediately he felt his face in something soft, and the scent was heavenly too with a mix of sweat. Hmm, seems his senses were alright. Upon his natural instinct, he grabbed whatever his face buried in, taking a feel of it before he heard a soft moan. Freezing on the spot, his mind went haywire with the possibilities.

'_Wait! This...round...curvy...extremely soft & spongy...this scent...Oh shit!'_, his face paled when he recognised what he was squeezing and of whom he was squeezing. Opening his eyes in slight horror and anticipation, he saw the flushed face of the one & only Anko Mitarashi, her eyes closed in pleasure or irritation, her face red indicating a blush or anger, he didn't know. But knew one thing, he had to apologize or he could kiss his manhood goodbye, not that he could do that literally.

"Go-Gomen A-Anko-san. I-I'm extremely sorry", he apologised, his voice stuttering like that of Orochimaru caught experimenting by his mommy while his hand still hadn't left her left plump breast. What more was that during the night to get comfortable, Anko had taken off her trenchcoat leaving her in a VERY revealing fishnet, almost making Naruto feel her skin. On the other hand, a teasing grin took birth on Anko's flushed face.

"Hehe, I see you're still enjoying yourself despite the apology, eh Naru-kun?", she reached down to whisper in his ears, "If you want me, you could've just said so Na-ru-to-kun", she whispered huskily, her hot breath tingling his neck, making his senses go haywire. He started sputtering while his blush darkened to that Hinata's shade before Anko started laughing hysterically. After some moments of her laughing at his expense she calmed down, although she was still lightly snickering to herself.

"Oh hehehe , that was great! I can't believe that I just pranked the greatest prankmaster of Konoha of all times", she said while wiping the tears from so much laughing before wearing her trench coat, while Naruto couldn't help but feel proud of that compliment. It was like pranking flowed in his blood, and although his DNA had changed he felt as though he was honouring his mother with his status as a prankmaster, pretty weird huh. Shaking himself from these useless thoughts , he remembered the events that took place two days before.

"I presume Orochimaru fled", he said out of nowhere while Anko flinched ever so slightly before nodding sadly at him.

"Good, I'll catch that bastard myself", he said off handed with determination shining in his eyes while Anko looked at him surprised, but that wouldn't be the first time he had done that.

"Hehe, no matter how much I try to know you, you always manage to surprise me Naru-kun", she said with a surprisingly much lower tone than she usually uses, a small smile of adoration present on her face making Naruto feel all warm inside before he decided to ask what was on his mind since the start of the second exams.

"Okay, I'm kinda confused here. Why do you keep calling me Naru-kun? You act as if you have known me my whole life even though I've never met you", he said in confusion with a hint of irritation in his voice.

"Oh, you've never met me huh? Seems I need to freshen up your memory", she said with a wink before transforming herself into a girl who looked to be in her teens, her purple hair falling to the mid of her back wearing civilian clothes. There was a cute expression on her face, a dango stick in her soft hands which she seemed to be offering to Naruto.

"Do you want dango whisker-chan", she asked with an extreme cute face, her eyes shining as if her whole world depended on Naruto's answer. Immediately, Naruto's jaw dropped on the hospital bed, his eyes wide while he pointed a shaky finger at her.

"You...You are...", he stuttered while the girl smiled in anticipation.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback- 5 Years Ago- Several Months After the Disappearance of his Friends (Kurenai, Yugao &amp; Hana)<strong>

* * *

><p>Little 8 years old Naruto was currently going through a trash can in a dark alley to find something to eat. It was night time, so under the street lights he was hoping to find something edible as he hadn't eaten anything for two days. All the other food shops refused to give him anything, he hadn't got any money for Ichiraku ramen and didn't like to put burden on the old man there. It was still some days before he would get his weekly allowance from his jiji, so he had to resort to trashcan food to atleast keep him alive. Not finding anything, he kicked the can in frustration.<p>

"Ahh damn it! Isn't there anything here that I can eat?", he said while grabbing his dirty blonde hair in frustration before he heard the soft sounds of footsteps of someone approaching the alley with his enhanced senses. Immediately hiding in a dark corner behind the other cans, he looked sneakily to see a girl of his age coming to exactly where he was hiding. His eyes widened his horror before he heard a soft & a caring voice.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, I'm not here to hurt you. You're hungry right?", as if answering her question he stood up shakily, he had nothing to lose after all. He knew this could be one of the many methods of the villagers to kill him with poisoned food, but he didn't care, either his stomach was getting full or he was just gonna die. He was tired of it, he wouldn't be able to live by the end of the week anyway. But he was surprised to see a 'very' beautiful girl, taller than him by a few inches with a cheerful expression on her face carrying two stuffed bags. His mouth watered at the delicious aroma of the hot food coming from those paper bags, while he just nodded, his eyes transfixed on the stuff she was carrying like he had found the working scrolls to Hiraishinin. He was brought out of his mouth watering trance when he heard her giggling, her voice sounded like an angel leading to a small blush on his whiskered face.

"Aww, is whisker-chan blushing? How cute!", she exclaimed before taking him into a sudden tight hug, making Naruto's face flush an extreme shade of red as his face was pushed into her impressive bust, for her age atleast. He was a bit uncomfortable with the sudden physical contact as he wasn't used to it after all. But somehow he was a bit disappointed when she released him but that bright cheery smile of hers more than made up for it, lighting a small smile on his face.

"Ano...who are you?", he asked while tilting his head in confusion whereas the girl just blinked at him.

"Oh... do you remember who puts those packs of dango on your door at mornings & nights?", she said with her shining eyes which radiated happiness, he wished his eyes were like her too. Realising her question, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-You were...", he trailed off while she nodded furiously with a large grin, "Yep yep, it was me. Sorry that I couldn't meet you in person before, but I was always in a hurry for my training with my awesome sensei!", she said with so much happiness that it looked like nothing could make her sad.

"So...", he again trailed when his stomach growled loudly while he blushed in embarrassment. The girl leaned down and kissed him on the cheek, "You're so cute whisker-chan", she said with her shining brown eyes, a loving smile on her face while Naruto sputtered incoherent words, he didn't know how to deal with compliments, rarely did he faced such feat after all.

"Yosh! Let's go to your apartment, we need to fill your tummy up!", she said while taking Naruto's hand in her, her exuberance illuminating the night before they vanished in a puff of smoke.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Naruto's Apartment<strong>_

* * *

><p>Appearing in the small dark apartment, Naruto could feel his head spinning because of the teleportation as he wasn't used to it when he felt a soft but firm hand on his small shoulder, "Are you alright whisker-chan?", she said with concern while Naruto could feel his eye's twitching at the nickname.<p>

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, so stop calling me whisker-chan dattebayo!", he said with a frown as he pointed his thumb at his chest proudly while she cooed.

"Ooh, does whisker-chan not like his name?", she said in a teasing tone while Naruto's irritation grew. He was about to retort before she beat him to it," You can also call me by any nickname if you want, ne?", she offered with a smile while he went into thinking pose. After some moments of not saying anything, "Oh come on, it shouldn't take that long to come up with a name for me, it could be 'super angel', or like 'pretty awesome princess', ne?", she offered with a grin before Naruto suddenly said.

"Oh I know... dango-chan!", he exclaimed while she face vaulted. She got up, her eyes twitching while a vein popped on her forehead before she grabbed him by his collar.

"What kind of idiotic name is that!", she yelled, shaking him furiously before Naruto retorted back, "Then what kind of a stupid name is whisker-chan?", he said as both 'hmph-ed' in irritation, looking in opposite directions, arms crossed in front of their chests.

"I wouldn't talk to you, you're mean", she said in a childish-like voice while Naruto winced ever so slightly.

"Neither would I...you were the one who started this", he puffed his cheeks to show his irritation, both of them stubborn before another growl from Naruto's stomach broke them out of their stupor before the girl sighed.

"Alright, alright. Let's eat now, you haven't eaten for a while now", she said before putting the freshly baked dango on some plates which she had brought from the kitchen on the small dinner table of Naruto's apartment.

"Hey...how do you know which things are kept where in my house", he said while the girl grinned sheepishly, "Oh, I kept coming here during nights to check up on you or your apartment after my training, but I always found you asleep", she said, a hint of fear in her usually bright eyes for how he would take this. Meanwhile, Naruto didn't say anything but just went upto her before hugging her tightly, his small hands locking around her curvy lower back while he rested his head on her stomach.

"Th-Thank you fo...for everything dango-chan", he said with his quivering voice while she just blinked in surprise before hugging him back, "Oh hehe... it's nothing whisker-chan, really", she said with a small blush adorning her cheeks under the moonlight, almost giving her form an angelic glow. However, her clothes were tattered a bit as she had come after her training as usual.

"No...no...it means everything...t-to me", he said while furiously shaking his head as his grip tightened. She lovingly stroked his blonde hair she was so mesmerised with while he sobbed a bit. After a few moments of just staying in this position he calmed down a bit, " C'mon now, my dango is getting cold", she said jokingly while Naruto too nodded, his eyes still wet before he wiped them with his petite hands. She sat on one of the two chairs while Naruto took the other one before they both starting eating. Both of them ate like they hadn't eaten for days, while that was true in case of Naruto but because of the training that her sensei put her through, she was hungry as hell. While Naruto hadn't eaten dango before, he was slowly coming to like it, but the taste didn't matter to him as long as his stomach was full right now.

She & Naruto both sighed in contentment as they patted their buffy stomach, "That was...awesome", he said with a dreamy look on his face, it felt amazing for his stomach to be full after two days while the girl nodded with him in satisfaction.

"Hey...um dango-chan?", he said with a faraway look from his face while she 'hmm-ed' to indicate that she was listening, her eyes still closed as she enjoyed the comfortable silence between them.

"Do you know...Behihime-chan, Yugi-chan or Tsume-chan?", he said with a hopeful look in his eyes while she flinched lightly at the question which went unnoticed by Naruto, as he was too engrossed in the memory of his friends whom he had been searching for months now.

"Sorry whisker-chan, but I don't know about them", she said while her eyes were still closed, trying to avoid seeing the sad expression on his face.

'_Gomen Naru-kun, but I promised Kure-chan, Yugao-chan & Hana-chan not to tell about them to you'_, she thought before remembering the main reason she had met him tonight.

"Ne whisker-chan, I'm going with my sensei to a training trip outside the village", she said after opening her eyes while Naruto's eyes widened.

"Y-You too...but when will you b-be back?", he said, a sad look on his face at having to say goodbye to yet another of his rare friends.

"Ah don't worry, I'll be back soon. I have to train to get stronger", she said with a smile before a look of confusion crossed Naruto's face, "But why do you want to become strong?", he said with a cute expression making her blush a bit.  
>"So I can protect my precious people", she said with conviction as determination shined in her brown eyes while Naruto's eyes widened. It was this line that had changed his whole perspective on the world of shinobi, it was this one simple statement that had urged and helped him to face more difficult times he would come across in the next five years, it was this declaration that had made the blueprints for his nindo, his shinobi's way, his way of the ninja and most importantly, his reason for becoming strong and his dream of becoming Hokage.<p>

"...and especially you, whisker-chan", she said in a barely audible whisper which any normal person wouldn't have been able to hear. His pupil in his wide eyes zoomed out to that of a small circle when he heard her whisper.

"R-Really? B-But why would you d-do that?", he asked with a lump in his throat while she smiled serenely at him, "Of course I would, as to why...nope, not telling you", she replied before sticking her tongue out at him while Naruto couldn't help but smile at her. It was probably one of his rare happy days in a year, seeing her face and her happy expression, an unfamiliar warmth spread throughout his body like a wildfire.

"Then I too would become strong, and will protect you along with other people who are precious to me dattebayo!", he said with his thousand watt smile making her blush yet again, before she replied, "I'll look forward to it whisker-chan", before motioning him to come closer to her. Naruto got out of his chair before moving to the other side of the table in front of her sitting form.

"It's late now whisker-chan, you should sleep now. I too have to rest as I'll leave the village early tomorrow", she said with a small smile while he lowered his head.

"C'mon, don't be gloomy. I'll be back strong and will protect you from all those idiot villagers. Meanwhile, Hokage-sama should be able to keep a leash on them somewhat. But...", she bit her lip while withdrawing her gaze from his oceanic blue eyes in which she could just lose herself, "You'll remember me, wouldn't you?", she said with a worried face while he nodded furiously.

"Ofcourse, you're now one of the few who I treasure and would gladly give up my life for", he said with a smile while she moisture gathered in her eyes before she crushed him into a tight hug.

"I'll miss you so much whisker-chan", she whispered with a sniff, while Naruto patted her back with his small hands, "I'll miss you too", he whispered before she released him slowly while rubbing her eyes. Slowly leaning down, she placed a tender kiss on his cheeks while he blushed furiously. Nobody had ever kissed him, even on the cheek, so it felt kinda weird but he wasn't the one to complain.

"Ja ne whisker-chan and maybe when I return, I'll tell you my name", she said while grinning before vanishing in a shunshin.

"HEY WAIT!", he shouted but she was already gone, " Damn! I really forgot to ask her name. Aah! I'm such an idiot!", he exclaimed while smacking his forehead.

"But...I'll always remember you and wait for you...hehehe, dango-chan", he spoke to himself while laughing at the stupid nickname he had come up with.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback End<strong>

* * *

><p>"DANGO-CHAN!", he exclaimed as he got out of his white sheets before hugging her tightly. Anko blushed furiously while her eyes twitched in irritation at the silly name he hadn't seem to forgot.<p>

"Will you stop using that ridiculous name! I now call you Naru-kun, don't I?", she said, trying to feign irritation but couldn't help but smile while Naruto released her before rubbing the back of his head, smiling sheepishly.

"Sorry, so...", his eyes widened when he realised that the famous torture specialist of Konoha was that same bubbly, always smiling and impulsive girl that he had met about five years ago. He now started understanding everything, why she didn't came to greet him after her training. He was sad at the time that she could've just abandoned him like his other previous three friends, or worse maybe she had died out there during her training. He now understood everything, she was Anko Mitarashi, prodigy student of the snake Sanin & traitor Orochimaru. That bastard had fooled her innocent mind at that time, he had given her curse mark during their training trip before she was found on the shores of the Demon Island. He didn't even want to imagine what that asshole may have put her through or what disgusting things she may have seen with him to change her personality so much.

"S-So...you w-were Anko all a-along. Y-You were the o-one to help me. That's why... that's why you didn't came to meet me after you were found in a partial amnesia state. You h-had such a b-bright personality before...th-that bastard" he growled while Anko just smiled sadly before nodding at him.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't meet you after that. When I returned, there was already the burden of curse mark on me along with amnesia. My mind was on the brink of going insane with the things that I saw with him and the constant pain that this curse seal provides me with, but Hokage-sama along with my friends saved me. By the time I was stable enough, Hokage-sama had already told me not to approach you just like Kurenai, Yugao & Hana-", she was interrupted by Naruto.

"What! What do you mean Hana & Yugao too?", he said in confusion while she just smiled in anticipation waiting for him to sort things out by himself, it would be much better to see that. His eyes widened when he realised.

"D-Do you mean Inuzuka Hana & Uzuki Yugao, two of the famous four i-ice queens of Konoha? What w-would they w-want with me? I swear I d-didn't take a p-peek on them wh-while they we-were bathing", he said with fear in his voice, covering his manhood while Anko just blinked before she broke into fits of laughter. True, these ice queens were the only ones who were on his, 'Not to Prank' list. It may be funny to anyone else, but ask those who had their manhood's amputated because of these four.

"No no...you got it all wrong. They wouldn't hurt you, not in a million years, trust me with that. They would rather commit senppuku before even thinking of that. Oh, hehehe... I'll have to tell this to Kure-chan, Yugao-chan & Hana-chan for sure!", she said still laughing to herself while Naruto sighed heavily in relief.

"But wait, '-chan'? You know them? I thought these four rarely interacted with someone except themselves", he said in confusion while Anko grinned at him.

"True true, they prefer to remain in their own circle, so why wouldn't I know them if we talk with each other everyday", she said with shining eyes while Naruto's jaw dropped for the second time.

"W-Wait, you m-mean to tell me th-that you're the fourth one", he stuttered while she nodded with a smirk before he ruffled his long spiky hair, sighing from all the surprises he's been getting these past couple of days.

"Wow! Never thought I would meet two ice queens in person", he said in wonder while Anko sat beside him, the closeness between them making her blush, Naruto being the oblivious self.

"Naru-kun, but what about your curse mark? I don't think you're body will be able to handle three types of chakra", she said before he nodded in understanding. He then started explaining her all about Ayumi, but he was shocked when she told him that she along with other three & the Hokage knew about Kyuubi being a female & other things seeing as Kushina had told them about. Composing himself he then told her about why Ayumi had attacked the village that day making Anko sad as she told him that they hadn't even found Kushina's dead body that day, she was probably crushed under Kyuubi or other debris. He also told her of his tenant's plan to get rid of the curse seal.

"So, does that mean that you're free from it?", she asked while he shrugged. Curiosity eating her, she leaned across him and gasped upon seeing the same curse mark, although it was red in colour.

"H-How? It's red in colour. What happened? I saw that it was black yesterday", she said while Naruto's eyes widened too.

"I...don't know, I'll have to ask her. But right now, it seems she's sleeping, probably tired from all that work", he said before she nodded worriedly at him. After both of them remaining quiet for sometime, each lost in his/her own thoughts, Naruto smiled before he broke the silence.

"Ne Anko-chan...", he called whereas she blushed furiously at the addition of '-chan'.

'_I can't believe I actually made Mitarashi Anko blush. But don't worry Anko-chan, I'll bring you to the way you used to be, I'll bring you to your own happy self in no time. And I promise you that I'll remove that curse seal of yours one day. But first it seems, I have to concentrate on fuinjutsu along with my training'_, he thought before taking hold of her chin while Anko's heart started beating faster, her heart thumping in her chest as if wanting to come out and lay itself in Naruto's hand, in his care.

She gulped nervously as she stared into those intense blue orbs, she was not like this dammit! This was is so not her, she could kill men with just her looks, she could torture prisoners in the most vicious ways, hell not even the most handsome of guys could make her blush. But in front of him, all her insecurities just flood away like they never existed, she just couldn't retain her mask of a bad ass kunoichi in front of him. No matter what, she couldn't help but feel happy & safe in his presence, traces of the old Anko seem to appear whenever he's around her.

Leaning down, he kissed her softly on her cheek just like she did all those years ago leading to a cute blush on her cheeks. He grinned his foxy grin at her making her heart flutter while she could feel butterflies dancing around in her stomach. Naruto's grin faltered when his stomach growled loudly making him blush in embarrassment while Anko just chuckled, a small blush still on her cheeks.

"It seems that whenever we meet, you get hungry, ne Naru-kun", she said while Naruto just rubbed his back head while chuckling with her.

"I'll get something for you as I know you hate hospital food", she said before winking at him while Naruto pouted, "Hey, it's not fair. You know almost everything about me but I know very little about you Anko-chan", he said while she just smiled at him.

"Oh not to worry, we will have plenty of time to know each other", she said while sensually licking her middle finger making Naruto blush before she jumped out of the window.

Naruto sighed while chuckling to himself, _'That woman is crazy'_, he thought jokingly before a sad expression came across his face. Remembering his fight with Sasuke, he knew he had almost lost control on his emotions there. He couldn't allow that to happen in future. Orochimaru would've probably seen his reaction on his mother's topic, so there's no mistake he would try that tactic again in the future.

'_I need to get control over myself, I nearly killed him there. Don't want the fucking council on my ass right now'_, he thought while leaking a bit of killer intent at the thought of civilian council especially, those narrow minded fools. Remembering the matter about the curse mark, he tried to contact with Ayumi.

'_Hey Ayumi-chan, you there?'_, hearing no reply he took it that she must be asleep. Taking a look around for the first time after waking up, he saw that he was in a typical two bed room with a white curtain between them, although he was the only one currently there. He'd always hated hospitals, the smell of medicines and the trash they called food made him just want to run away and never look back. The walls, bed sheets, the doctor's & nurse's uniforms and even the floor were just plain dull white making it seem like he was in an asylum. Although the bright sun rays coming through the window along with the peaceful sounds of chirping birds made up for it. While sitting, he flexed his arms & wrists also noticing that he was still in his jounin-like black vest with dark blue shinobi pants, his black sandals on the side of his bed while his white trenchcoat hung by the entrance door.

He was pulled out his thoughts when the door to his room slid sideways to reveal Hiruzen in his Hokage robes along with Mei & A.

"Ah, I see you've awaken Naruto-kun", said Hiruzen with his grandfatherly smile while Naruto's expression turned serious, "Cut the act old man, I know you've been watching me & Anko from that crystal ball of yours", he said while A smirked in amusement whereas Hiruzen sighed. It would seem his grandson like figure still hadn't forgiven him.

'_Smart kid'_, Mei thought in amusement while outwardly she was smiling typically.

"It would seem you know me better than I thought Naruto-kun", he said with a smile before Naruto retorted, "Yeah, never known you better than these past couple of days", A had to tighten his jaw this time not to outright laugh at the poor Hokage.

'_Oooh, that's another knockout jab'_, thought our sarcastic Mizukage while Hiruzen's eyes twitched before he again spoke under the glare that Naruto was piercing him with.

"Ahm, it seems that you're not in a good mood", said the Hokage calmly while the blonde jinchuriki yet again retorted, "Yes, thanks to you."

"WILL YOU STOP DOING THAT!", yelled the famous professor using the famous big head jutsu while A just outright started laughing whereas Mei started giggling, it's not everyday you see a genin rile up a kage after all.

Naruto jerked his head when he heard laughing to notice that there were two other people along with Hiruzen. His eyes widened when he recognized them as the Raikage & the Mizukage. Remembering the events at the preliminaries due to his shadow clones, he immediately started thinking of an idea to apologise to them.

"It seems you noticed Raikage-dono & Mizukage-dono after all", said Hiruzen after taking a deep breath while Naruto greeted them immediately, albeit a bit nervously, "It's nice to meet you Raikage-sama, Mizukage-sama", using these kind of formalities just didn't suit him.

"The pleasure's all mine Naruto-san, but no need for formalities. You can call me Mei", said our busty Mizukage while Naruto blushed upon seeing her beautiful face, also remembering the stunt his idiotic clone had pulled that day.

"I-I'm sorry for what the c-clones did", he suddenly said bowing to them while sitting whereas Raikage just waved his apology off, "It's alright gaki, it's been awhile since someone had the guts to show me the middle finger", he said making Naruto blush in embarrassment.

Meanwhile Mei too was blushing as she remembered that event, she couldn't just flush it out of her mind for these past two days. Feeling Naruto's innocent gaze on her as if expecting her to say something, her blush deepened but she managed to compose herself but replying.

"I-It's quite alright Naruto-san", she said while thanking her long red hair which were doing quite well to blend in with the blush before Naruto smiled brightly at her. His charming smile darkening her blush while she could feel her heart pounding. But thankfully for her, Anko came to the rescue as she appeared in the room via shunshin with a large bowl of packed Ichiraku Ramen making Naruto drool at the sight.

"Oh, my apologies Hokage-sama, Raikage-sama, Mizukage-sama. I didn't know you were here", she said with a sheepish expression while Sarutobi gave her a warm smile.

"Don't worry Anko, we were just here to check up on Naruto-kun & to discuss some important things", said Sarutobi seriously while Anko got the message before nodding at him.

"See you later Naru-kun & take care!", she said after putting the packed ramen on the small desk besides the table before winking at him making his cheeks red and disappearing via leaf shunshin.

"You can eat it later Naruto, we need to discuss some important things here", said the Hokage in his authoritative tone making Naruto pout and Mei had to resist glomping him right there. Ignoring his expression, he continued.

"First, how is your curse mark?", he said making Naruto glance at A & Mei.

"Don't worry, you can tell them everything. A few days ago, a triangular alliance was formed between Konoha, Kiri & Kumo. They have already shared the information about their jinchuriki, so it would be alright", he said while Naruto nodded a bit hesitantly, he still couldn't completely trust outsiders but he also had to follow the Hokage's orders, however he wouldn't tell them everything.

"Then I presume you know about Kyuubi being female as Anko told me", said Naruto while Hiruzen nodded, Kushina had informed him about that before. On the other hand Raikage & Mei were shocked that Kyuubi was a female.

"You mean to tell me that the strongest of the bijuu is a female", said A in a shocked tone before he heard a sickly sweet voice.

"You mean to say that we females cannot be the strongest", said Mei with a cheery smile while her red bang of hair shadowed her eyes, making A somewhat nervous, "O-Of course not", he said while laughing nervously.

"Good!", she said with a cheerful bright smile like she was never angry making A even more uncomfortable.

'_Bee was right, women are scary yo! Shit! Now I'm starting to sound like that idiot'_, thought A while Naruto & Hiruzen were snickering inwardly at the fastest shinobi in the world. After telling them of Ayumi's plan to get rid of the curse seal, they were shocked when they saw a red coloured curse mark on his back neck.

"Naruto-san, was it red when he gave it you?", asked Mei with a serious expression, "No, Anko told me that it was black before. But when I woke up, it was red. I'll ask Ayumi about this when she wakes up, considering she's tired from all the work", he said while staring out of the window.

"What...about the finals Hokage-sama?", asked Naruto still staring outside at the bright sunny day as he watched children play at the ground below with their parents.

"It will be announced today in the evening at the top floor of the Hokage's tower", said Sarutobi as he winced when Naruto used 'Hokage-sama' instead of his usual affectionate term of 'jiji'.

"About your Rinnegan Naruto-kun...", started Hiruzen while Mei's & A's interest perked up at the mention of such legendary doujutsu, "What about it?", said Naruto calmly still staring outside as a small smile came to his face, when he saw a mother tending to her son's injuries.

"All those moves, all those jutsus...how? I can understand the elemental ones, but sub-elementals and of the level you pulled out there?...That's just ridiculous even with all the shadow clones", said the Hokage while Naruto still wasn't facing him.

"Do you know what Itachi told me when my training finished?", said Naruto as he then watched a white bird fly freely, with no burden, no restraints, no obligations, totally alone in the vast blue sky. As if sensing the Hokage shake his head, he turned his head before continuing.

"He said-'You're not an average shinobi Naruto-kun, you're probably a bigger genius than I, Kakashi or the Yondaime ever were. It was just a matter of finding the right teacher for you & some incentive to drive you, and off you go. You have raw talent in abundance that even I cannot hope to surpass'", three pairs of eyes widened when they came to know that, Uchiha Itachi, probably the genius who comes after generations say this himself to the blonde jinchuriki. Again Hiruzen cursed Mizuki along with other academy teachers who acted like all the ignorant villagers.

"But that aside, how were you able to use three elements at such young age along with Ice & Storm. In most cases, you cannot use a sub-element unless you've got a bloodline, but two?", said A, curious to know the answer while Mei too was interested in this part.

"Rinnegan allows the user the affinity for all the five elements along with gravity. And also I can use as many sub elements as the six elements can form. For example, when my other two affinities unlock, I can use Lava & Boil release just like Mei-sama here", he said while gazing at her making their jaws drop except the Hokage.

"B-But that's impossible!", stuttered A while Mei was just speechless.

"A week ago, even the Rinnegan was impossible. But I have to train extensively in these sub elements to even get a grasp of them since I don't have a special bloodline to make it easier for me but only a strong affinity for them", he said while A grumbled about needing fresh air whereas Mei just smiled at Naruto.

"Then if you ever need help mastering Lava or Boil release Naruto-san, you can come to me", she said while Naruto looked at her in surprise before his expression turned to that of suspicion.

"Why would you do that? What would you gain from it?", he said making her blink in surprise.

'_He's suffered so much that he has trouble trusting just about anybody'_, she thought sadly before replying, "I wouldn't gain anything from it Naruto-san. And as Itachi-san said, if given a proper teacher you can tap into your full potential. You have suffered so much in your life that I think you atleast deserve that. Know that in this war against Akatsuki, we would need anything to our advantage that we can get. Although it's completely upto you to trust me, but I would be honoured to teach you. And of course it would be appreciative if you would be able to teach me something in future whenever you visit our village. Remember Naruto-san, you'll always be welcomed in our village as long as I'm the Mizukage", she said with a smirk making their jaws drop, here a kage was honoured to train a genin?

'_I guess you have something special about you Naruto-san'_, thought A while smirking to himself before he spoke, "Well if Mizukage-dono has given you an offer, then I guess it's my turn now eh Naruto? I've seen that lightning fist style of yours, it's good but lacks power as well as speed which you'll need for your future battles. That's just the beginning stage of my infamous Lightning Armour Taijutsu, so I would teach it you since you seem to have a talent for it. And you don't need to be suspicious, since in this treaty each of our villages are willing to share techniques, training regiments and other stuff upto some level. So it would be beneficial for us as well", said A shocking Naruto even further. This alliance was really something, based on purely trust and friendship, it truly was a rare feat in the world of shinobi.

"I would be honoured to take up on your offer in the future Raikage-sama, Mei-sama", he said as he bowed to them, still sitting before Hiruzen interrupted him.

"Naruto-kun, there's another thing I wanted to tell you", he said seriously making Naruto lift his head to see Hiruzen & A having perverted grins on their faces and Mei, blushing?

"You need to have a harem", said the Hokage simply making Naruto blush furiously.

"Hokage-dono! Y-You can't call it like that?", stuttered Mei while Hiruzen chuckled, "Oh pray tell me then Mizukage-dono, how would you spell it?", said the old pervert while Naruto still had a flushed face.

"Well Naruto-san...", she blushed again before continuing, "You need to have multiple wives under the Clan Restoration Act as stated in", she turned towards the Hokage who sighed before answering, "page 1187, paragraph fourth of Hokage's Enacted Laws book, formed by the Shodaime himself along with some additions later on", Naruto blinked at possibly the most ridiculous way of telling one that, 'Yo kid! You're gonna love & bang some multiple women of your choice to create a clan, it's that simple got it?'.

"So, which version was better Naruto-san?", said A as he wiped the blood off his nose while Naruto deadpanned, "Of course the earlier one", making Mei grumble about all men being perverts.

"Is it because of Rinnegan?", he asked as Hiruzen nodded with him, "Then would you mind telling me the minimum number of wives I'll have to take?", he asked with raised eyebrows while Sarutobi's grin widened.

"You have to take a minimum of ten wives Naruto-kun", he said making Naruto's blush skyrocket along with Mei's while the aged male kages started giggling pervertedly.

"I don't think I can handle that many", he grumbled while A patted him on the back painfully making him wince, "Oh don't worry Naruto-san, you'll do fine! Although you'll have to increase your stamina tenfold" he said making poor Naruto's blush darken.

"Is that all Hokage-sama?", he said while Hiruzen nodded at him, that blasted perverted grin still on his face as if HE was having a harem. Hopping off the bed, Naruto slipped on his shinobi sandals before he stood up. Just as he was about to walk up to his trenchcoat, he felt the world around him spin. Seeing his condition, Mei immediately was in front of him before she caught his falling form.

She blushed when she felt his head in between her breasts before Naruto came back to his senses. Immediately that same feeling of being crushed into the valley of heaven washed over him, just like when he had woke up. His face turned to that Hinata's shade of red as he jerked himself off her while sputtering apologies to her, Mei still having a blush on her face.

'_That...felt good'_, she thought while blushing before she noticed that Naruto was long gone along with his trenchcoat and packed Ramen.

* * *

><p><strong>After Two Minutes-Konoha's Forests-Behind the Hokage's Monument<strong>

* * *

><p>Panting, Naruto skidded across the clearing in the dense forests he would come when he was little to hide from the villagers, when they were as he dubbed, in a demon hunting mode. His heart had been pounding so rapidly in that room when his face was in between those melons, that he just wanted to hide from her and never show himself again. Wanting to escape the uncomforting position and most possibly the wrath of the Mizukage, he had dashed from the hospital as fast as he could.<p>

'_Well, atleast Ramen's still with me'_, he thought with a smile before sitting down under the shade of a tree as he opened it with barely restrained glee. Just as he was about to take the first bite out of it, he noticed that wind just in front of him started picking up, leaves started rustling while there was pin drop silence around him. Sensing that something was probably wrong, he stood up sneakily before drawing a kunai and activated his Rinnegan to see if there were any chakra signatures nearby.

But he was shocked to his core, when suddenly lighting started cackling just in front of him, a small crater formed on the ground while a drift started to open from midair. Suddenly the drift tore to a size that of a normal door, from which came a huge single bloodied claw in a blur stopping just inches from his face, blood dripping from the sharpened tip just in front of his wide eyes. The claw immediately blurred back into the hole before he heard a loud feminine scream come from this unexplainable hole in midair.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH", his eyes widened when something or rather someone hit him full force making both of them crash on the tree trunk, poor Naruto having to face the impact of their collision. The drift slowly started to decrease in size until it wasn't there.

'_HOLY SHIT! What the hell was that?'_, thought Naruto while grunting painfully as he saw everything return to normal, still oblivious to the fact that there was someone lying on him. His eyes widened when he heard an angelic voice, a voice he had come to know in the last couple of days.

"Uhh...what hit me dattebane..."

* * *

><p><strong>Hehehehe, I know I'm evil ( Cliffy Cliffy). Heads up to those who can tell me how did she land here, I think I gave you enough hint. And again no flames, everything will be explained in the upcoming chapters as to what happened here. Also the next update may take some time seeing as I would be going out of station for two or three days. If you have any questions(Except how did Kushina land here) you can just PM me. So review, and until next time Ja ne!<strong>

**N6023!**


	13. Conflicted Feelings!

**Hey Guys! So here's another quick update you all have been itching for. Also those who hate incest or NaruKushi, it would be better if you just skipped this chapter or outright stop reading this fic. And without anything else to add, let's get on with the show.**

* * *

><p><strong>Ch-13-Mom's Red Hair &amp; Conflicted Feelings<strong>

* * *

><p>"AAAAAHHHHHHH", his eyes widened when something or rather someone hit him full force making both of them crash on the tree trunk, poor Naruto having to face the impact of their collision. The rift slowly started to decrease in size until it wasn't there.<p>

'_HOLY SHIT! What the hell was that?'_, thought Naruto while grunting painfully as he saw everything return to normal, still oblivious to the fact that there was someone lying on him. His eyes widened when he heard an angelic voice, a voice he had come to know in the last couple of days.

"Uhh...what hit me dattebane...", she groaned while holding her head, Naruto deactivated the Rinnegan to look at her properly, and not her chakra. His eyes widened, his face pale white like had seen a ghost, while he tried to breathe deeply & slowly.

'_Oh boy...Okay, this is not real, this is not real...this is just my imagination...Kaa-san is dead, remember'_, he thought while breathing deeply, his eyes closed hoping his imagination would just fade away when he opened his eyes. Slowly opening them, he saw one of the most beautiful violet eyes he could ever imagine, while the one who had fallen from out of nowhere was looking at him with wide eyes.

'_Holy mother of kage Bunshin...she's REAL'_, he thought as he tried to get up but to no avail as the familiar women on his chest just didn't seem to want to get up, and only stare at his face. Getting uncomfortable by her stare, he got up forcefully while backing up against the trunk, an expression of horror on his face, sweat beats rolling down on his face while he breathed deeply, his ramen forgotten.

"Shoo...Shoo...get away...fly away...kai! Kai! KAI!", the red haired woman looked at him like he was crazy before she noticed his features, blonde hair, blue eyes and the familiar white trenchcoat. She narrowed her eyes before completely blurring out of Naruto's vision, he gagged on his own breath when she suddenly appeared in front of him before giving him a punch so hard that he was immediately on his knees, spitting up saliva while coughing.

"That was for sealing Ayumi-chan into my Naru-kun you bastard!", she yelled at him furiously while Naruto's eyes widened.

'_What the hell is she talking about? Kaa-san... how can you be alive?'_, he thought while in pain before he was roughly pulled to his feet by her. Yet again, he nearly had a heart attack when he saw her eyes. Her sclera was red, one black tomoe in each eye surrounding a slit-like small pupil while he also noticed that her nails had lengthened just like his do whenever he uses Ayumi's chakra.

'_Sh-Sharingan...W-What the... Youki?'_, he was having a mental breakdown now, what was happening right now was making his mind go crazy. First his supposedly dead mother falls from midair and then this, Sharingan? His mother, they were Uzumaki weren't they? And it was just in the beginning stage, could it be that she had just awakened it? So many questions his mind was bursting with right now. He was pulled out of his brain storming questions when felt himself being shaken roughly.

"How could you do that to your son you idiot! I hate you!", tears started welling up in her red eyes which oddly, matched quite nicely with her red hair.

"I told you that the life of a jinchuriki is not easy. Ayumi-chan would've broken out of that genjutsu if given time, yet you had to pull that stunt...Now my sochi...he would be hated by the village. And why are you crying now? Where's my little Naru-kun dattebane?", she said while tears streamed down her beautiful dirt laced face as she continued to shake him furiously. Although Naruto himself couldn't understand a word she was saying right now, but he was just happy to see his mother while tears of happiness streamed down his face.

"K-Kaa-san...", he choked as more tears freely fell on the dusty ground while a huge smile took birth on his face. Her eyes widened, also letting go of him with trembled hands before she stuttered.

"Wh-What?", her eyes as wide as they could get as she gazed into his oceanic blue eyes while she shakily stepped back.

'_His eyes...they're not Minato's. So warm, bright, innocent and are shining with pure joy right now...yet they contain...deep inside...so much pain, loneliness, sadness'_, she thought before realising that he had called her Kaa-san? But that wasn't possible, surely this young man must be mistaken, she only had one child to whom she had just given birth to. But she couldn't help but feel a sort of a deep connection with him, like they were fated to meet this day.

Naruto also noticed the conflicting emotions in her eyes, which had changed back to violet along with her nails lengthening down to normal. For the first time taking in her appearance, he noticed that she was in a hospital gown while her feet were bare, her long red hair which were reaching down to her knees were flowing gently with the soft breeze, her skin milk creamy with no blemish whatsoever. He blushed heavily when he noticed her generous bust more noticeable in that gown . Turning to her heart shaped face, his blush darkened when he made eye contact with her mesmerising violet eyes, her slightly parted pink lips as if inviting him to take them. Upon looking closely, he saw she was panting a bit while her skin was sweaty & a bit dirty. Her knees were buckling under her weight as if she was using all of her remaining energy just to stay standstill.

"Wh-Who are you?", she stuttered questioningly while Naruto could still feel pain from that punch.

'_I can't believe that she could punch so hard in her weakened state. I guess she wasn't kage level kunoichi for nothing'_, he thought having a large smile on his face before replying.

"A-Are you U-Uzumaki K-Kushina?", he said with a hopeful look in his eyes, he had to be absolutely sure about this while she nodded hesitantly. Well it wasn't a big surprise to her if he knew her, seeing as she was famous across the elemental countries. His smile couldn't have been wider right then, it was that rare true smile he showed when he was truly happy and right now he was feeling something which was beyond the limits of happiness of what a normal person could define. Kushina blushed at seeing him smile, which was practically radiating out like bright sunrays in the canopy of a forest.

Right now, he didn't care if he was grinning like an idiot or that tears were freely falling even through his closed eyes, he just wanted to run & hug her, to never let her go. But he had to restrain himself right then from doing that, seeing as she could take it as an attack. He could see that she was on full alert right then in front of him. And although he didn't have any idea of how she landed here, what that rift or the bloodied claw was about, the fact that his mother was standing right in front of him made him forget all about that.

"I...hehehe...hehe...", he sniffed, chuckling to himself while wiping the tears which seemed to be flowing like an endless river from his eyes, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto dattebayo!", he stated proudly while stunned silence followed after his declaration. Kushina was at loss for words right now and was having trouble picking up her jaw, did he mean to say that, he was...her baby boy. But babies don't grow that much in one hour or so, do they? Of course not! What the hell was she thinking? Noticing her surroundings for the first time after she had arrived dramatically, her eyes widened to that saucers when she saw that it was daytime while the forest around them was completely unharmed.

'_What...is happening here? This area was completely destroyed some minutes ago, and there were supposed to stars shining, not the sun'_, she thought before her eyes widened in realisation when she remembered something Ayumi had told her in the past.

'_She said that she had control over space & time. Could it be that, to save me and make me reunite with my son that she sent me into the future?But... I have to confirm it'_, she thought before speaking, breaking the silence between them, his intense gaze making her blush.

"Wh-Where are we?", she said making Naruto blink before he replied.

"This is the forest behind the Hokage monument of Konoha", he stated dumbly wondering what was going on in her mind also noticing that her eyes had widened a bit before they settled back to normal.

"I see...and can you tell me how many years has it been since Ayu- Kyuubi attacked?", she said, her tongue almost slipping out Kyuubi's name while Naruto again blinked in surprise, taken aback by her questions.

"What...Kaa-san...what are you...", he asked in confusion, still teary eyed while he slowly approached her whereas Kushina immediately jumped back to create more distance between them, a serious expression on her face, a face telling Naruto of years of experience and power beyond his comprehension. Naruto felt his heart being crushed at the sight of her drawing away from him, like he was some kind of...monster. He hadn't expected that.

"You stay right where you are young man. I don't know what's going on here and I'm sure neither do you. You can't just say Kaa-san and except me to believe you like that. It could be one those special transformation techniques which can fool even the kages. So it would be better if you just answer...", she trailed as she was immediately on her knees due to weakness, while she started to pant heavily, a struggled expression on her face.

'_Damn it! I used almost all of my chakra in holding the seal while I gave birth to Naru-kun. But for my sochi's sake, I have to stay strong. This may be one of the enemy's tactics or that masked man's genjutsu'_, she thought, still wary of her surroundings as well as the young shinobi in front of her which looked like a carbon copy of young Minato. Ignoring his pained heart, he rushed towards her to aid her before she pulled out a kunai from the sleeves of her loose gown, a serious expression on her face.

"Stay right where you are, don't come near me. One wrong move, and you'll be wiped from the face of this planet", she said with a glare while Naruto stopped frozen in the midst of his dash towards her. His expression that of unimaginable pain he was feeling right then, his mind only registering those four words, 'don't come near me'. That statement making him remember all those villagers who shouted at him to just get away from their lives.

'_Get away from me demon'_

'_Why can't you just leave us'_

'_Don't come near me & my son, you got that'_

'_You're just a pathetic excuse for existence on the planet'_

His heart broke into two when he heard his own mother say those words to him, he knew she was being cautious. But so many years of hearing those statements pained him so much to hear that, especially from her. When he had told her that he was her son, his overjoyed heart had expected her to take him in her arms. His emotional part couldn't help but think that she too was pushing him away like the rest of the villagers. Slowly, again tears started to stream down his face, but this time they were not of happiness and excitement, rather they were of immense pain that a thirteen year old shouldn't even be able to imagine, let alone go through it. This time, the pain he was feeling was much intense than he had felt ever before.

He could bear the beatings of those villagers, their glares, their ignorance towards his existence, he could even bear when Sakura hit him every time and straight out rejected him for dates in the past, he could bear the death of someone like Haku & Zabuza who helped in giving finishing touches to his way of the shinobi. But this, this was much painful than Orochimaru's most powerful attacks he had faced.

'_It hurts...so much...Why? M-My own Kaa-san...'_, he thought while clutching the left side of his chest, as he bit his bottom lip, his face down as he started to trudge backwards slowly ignoring the calls of Kushina. Meanwhile, it started to rain eventually like even the heavens were crying sympathetically for him.

'_Naruto-kun! What's wrong?'_, his eyes widened when he heard Ayumi's concerned voice suddenly come out of nowhere while she couldn't see Kushina as Naruto's face was facing the slowly becoming wet ground as the rain started to pour heavily.

'_Why is he crying? Was it something I said?'_, thought Kushina as she strangely felt her heart clench at the sight of him crying and the pained expression on his face. Her feet automatically started taking her towards Naruto, both of them totally wet because of the heavy downpour, her weakness forgotten.

'_Naruto-kun! Tell me, what's wrong?'_, asked Ayumi frantically, her concerned voice reverberating through Naruto's pained form. She had just woke up when she heard his crying and the pained feeling she was feeling, as they were now connected after the work she had done.

'_Ayumi-chan...you were wrong...m-my mother...she doesn't love me'_, he inwardly said as Ayumi eyes widened. She now completely understood what was happening right now. She knew that soon Kushina would be arriving in this timeline considering that she still remembered that she had sent Kushina as a last resort to the future by opening a dimensional rift through midair. She knew that Kushina in her weakened state, would be the target of that war-hawk Danzo & his organisation Root and would be an easy target. But she wanted to give Naruto this as a surprise for all the beatings and glares he had to suffer because of her. She could've have told him in the forest, but it only would've diverted his mind then from the task. But considering that Kushina didn't know what had happened, she knew that the fiery Uzumaki would not trust Naruto right away. But damn! She should have thought of this scenario, even though Kushina's cautiousness was normal to any other normal shinobi, her precautious actions could actually hurt Naruto in the worst way possible, and that is what was happening right now.

'_Naruto! You have to understand that she too is confused about all of this, she's just being cautious that's all!'_, tried to reason Ayumi but Naruto's mind was too cloudy just like the weather to listen to anything. His behaviour would've been frustrating & pitiful for any third person, but Ayumi had watched every second of his life and knew what he must be going through. All his life he deeply desired for a mother's love, and he was still thirteen years old after all, so he would've have expected his mother to just accept him without any cinch. This was way too emotional topic for him to let his mind think about it even for a second. If he would have thought this out like he was usually doing since the activation of Rinnegan, he would've understood the situation and approached her calmly & patiently. However, seeing that he deeply cared for and admired his mother, it certainly would've crushed the young jinchuriki's heart to see her behave like that with him.

"A-Are you alright?", Naruto flinched when he heard that same soft voice mixed with the pitter-patter of raindrops. Kushina's eyes widened when she saw his pointed longer than normal nails, also feeling the same youki she was so familiar with.

'_It c-can't be...is he really my baby?_, she thought as she looked closer at his face. His spiky hair now wet resulting in more bangs covering his face. Her violet pupil zoomed out and shrunk in size due to her shock when she saw his more than normal defined whisker marks. Slowly tears of happiness started to form in her violet eyes before they streamed down her now wet face, her lips twitching upwards to slowly form a glowing smile.

'_He's my sochi...he's really my Naru-kun...So Ayumi-chan really did sent me to the future...but oh my god, he's so handsome'_, she thought as a light blush adorned her rosy cheeks, while her hand slowly started to approach his face on its own.

Just as she was about to call him, he suddenly dashed away from her as fast as he could, wanting to get away from that soft voice which he so desired to listen everyday of his life. He didn't know where he was going, his eyes were closed as he tried desperately to hold back tears, failing miserably at it as a choked sob escaped from his throat every few seconds. He had promised himself a while ago that he wouldn't cry anymore, but this was too much to handle. His running steps began to become sluggish, his speed slowing down while his feet splashed water with every step he took. Suddenly tripping on his feet, his body splashed onto the water on the ground before he skidded sideways to a halt, his white trench coat now dirty and covered in mud.

'_Uzumaki Naruto, control yourself! She loves you, you got me! She can't hate you, not in a million years!'_, yelled Ayumi inside his head while his choked sobs of emotional anguish became louder, filling the forest with it.

'_I-I don't know...I don't know...Ayumi-chan...it hurts so much...the way she talked to me...just like the villagers'_, he said inwardly while he desperately tried to get his loud sobs under control. He turned his body to look upwards, countless soft rain drops falling from the grey dull sky mixing with his salty tears as if purifying them. He felt so broken right now, he didn't know if he had the power to even get up now.

'_Naruto-kun...please...don't hurt yourself like that. It pains me so much to see you like this'_, said Ayumi in a pleading voice, tears cascading down her beautiful face as she desperately wanted to get out there, hug him lovingly and never let him go. But she knew that the only one right now who could take care of Naruto would be Kushina, that is if she had recognised him by now.

"N-Naru-kun...", Naruto's eyes widened when he again heard Kushina's soft but weak voice along with her sounds of panting, he sat up to look at her. She was barely standing while panting heavily, her knees trembling with extreme exhaustion, her long hair wet as they stuck to her wet appealing skin. But even with all that, he was surprised to see a glowing smile on her face, her eyes sparkling with unexplainable happiness and joy that he was hosting some moments ago. He would have blushed at the sight if not for the situation. Meanwhile, Kushina wasn't doing better when she took into account his wet figure and how handsome he looked while sitting there., hence a dark red blush on her face which Naruto couldn't see as he had diverted his eyes from her.

"What do you want?", immediately after he said this, he was tackled by a red blur. The combined form sliding on the wet ground before both of them stopped. Feeling her curves on his chest, he would've blushed if wasn't so confused by her happy teary face expression.

"Wha-", again he was interrupted when Kushina hugged him extremely tightly.

"My sochi...my Naru-kun...you're alive! I'm sorry for the ...way I acted before...I was only being cautious...I love you so much...I love you! I love you! I love you dattebane!", she spoke as fast as she could, only stopping to take in the necessary oxygen, her arms tightly encircled around his neck. Naruto almost gagged when she suddenly hugged him, but the words she spoke completely made his heart leap with joy. He didn't know if he was right, but he felt something more in those words than there should be. Like she meant something else, something maybe even she was not aware of.

Kushina lifted her face to gaze into his mesmerising oceanic blue eyes, almost getting lost in them. Her face like that of a shining sun coming fresh out of the clouds, while her trembling hand slowly made its way onto his whiskered cheek.

"Y-You really m-mean that?", he asked in a choked voice, a hopeful look on his face while strands of long red hair fell on his face. Kushina nodded furiously while caressing his cheeks softly, making him blush while a light blush itself refused to leave her face. She couldn't explain it, but seeing him this happy and his full blown smile made her heart flutter while butterflies seemed to form in her stomach.

"Of course 'ttebane! I love you more than anything or anyone I've ever loved! You're my bundle of joy & happiness. I would never ever leave you...y-you...you don't know how much I've waited for this day...my baby", she squealed before again hugging him to her chest making him blush furiously. Both of them oblivious to the rain that continued to fall on their combined form.

* * *

><p><strong><span>Lime Warning<span>**

* * *

><p>For the first time in his life, Naruto didn't resist something which could be considered as perverted. Her wet silky gown, almost making him feel her skin made blood trickle down his nose while his face was squished in her plump, curvaceous, luscious &amp; utterly delicious D-cups. He could feel her cold, hardened nipples poking his cheek making his breathing somewhat laboured. Meanwhile Kushina too wasn't fairing much better, she almost moaned in pleasure when she felt his nose poking in between her breasts while there was a huge blush on her face, her heart starting to beating faster.<p>

'_What's wrong with me...he's my son...I shouldn't feel like this. But...it feels...so goood'_, she thought as an involuntary shudder passed through her wet & cold body. But she couldn't stop the moan from escaping her throat when one of her nipples accidently brushed against his cheek, sending jolts of electric pleasure throughout her body making her breathing heavier.

Meanwhile Naruto wasn't in control right now, this was the first time he had felt a female's body and a hot one at that. Thus he found himself extremely turned on, when he heard her soft moan while he could feel the blood rush to the lower parts of his body. His instincts taking over while his brain couldn't register what was going on rationally. He didn't have an idea why, but he had never had an urge so strong to touch a female's body, the same was happening with the fiery red head. Kushina pushed Naruto's head into her breasts as tightly as she could as another moan escaped her pink lips when her nipples again brushed against his whiskered cheeks, both of them breathing heavily, feeling warm despite the cold raindrops that were descending on their combined forms.

'_T-This isn't right...what am I doing? Ayumi-chan...what's going on...wow her breasts are so soft, firm & squishy'_, he said inwardly, a huge blush on his face before he heard perverted giggling inside his head.

'_Hehe...'purr'...enjoy Na-ru-to-kun'_, said Ayumi huskily making his eyes widen.

'_T-This is your doing isn't it?'_, he asked but didn't got any reply except that same giggling he's seen his pervert of a sensei do countless of times. He was brought out of his inner conversation when he again heard a soft moan escape Kushina's lips as she started to straddle her hips against his hardened member sending shivers down both of their spines making Naruto groan, wanting to get more pleasure as he too started to move his lower body in rhythm with her. She tightened her grip on his flakes of blonde hair while there was a pink tint on her cheeks. Hearing him groan in pleasure, her breathing became heavier while her mind was in a haze as she couldn't think properly anymore, it was as if something was affecting her before her eyes widened in realisation.

'_It's Ayumi-chan, she's releasing those damn pheromones again. I...I have to stop this...wh-what if Naru-kun hates me after this'_, she thought before she moaned in pleasure despite her thoughts, her body itself responding to the pheromones in air while her hips just couldn't stop moving despite her will.

"N-Naru-kun...s-stop this...ahh yes...n-no, w-we can't d-do this", she said while breathing heavily, her lower region now dripping wet with juices. Even though she was saying this, but actually she was the one who was doing everything while Naruto was just lost in the immense pleasure he was feeling whenever she rubbed her lower region with his stiffened member. His hand clutching strands of grass tightly, his eyes closed in pleasure as he tried to resist it, stop his mother but it was like his body wasn't responding to the mental signals anymore. He himself didn't know when he lifted his hand off the grass before it settled on her left plump mound. Kushina's breathing hitched in her throat while her eyes widened in surprise when she felt Naruto fondling her breast, a loud moan escaping her throat while her heart was pounding against her chest just like Naruto's.

"A-AAH...Naru-kun...yes...right there...squeeze it... as hard as you can", she moaned while panting, the pheromones being released by Ayumi doubling their pleasure and pulling their mind far away from logical reasoning.

"K-Kaa-san...we...stop", desperately tried Naruto to stop himself or Kushina but it seemed that she didn't hear him as she started to rub their lower regions with each other fastly, her thin hospital gown doing nothing to help. He opened his eyes and immediately his mouth went dry as he watched her wet, hardened & enticing pink nipple through her loose gown, the small water drops on her skin making him breath more heavily while his member throbbed painfully in his shinobi pants, his hand on automatic transmission as it continued to give attention to her left breast.

"Naru-to-kun...my n-nipples...suck them...ahh...bite them...hurry", said Kushina in between her moans as she pushed her mounds more onto his face.

'_Hehe...I knew she was the forward type...that's what I like about you Kushi-chan'_, thought Ayumi as she wiped the trickle of blood, her cheeks having a pink on them while her tails waved behind her madly in excitement, her lower region dripping wet from seeing & hearing their ...interactions.

* * *

><p><strong><span>Lime End<span>**

* * *

><p>Just as his body on automation was about to comply to Kushina's request, lighting struck a nearby tree with a thunderous sound making it catch fire nearly making them jump in their positions, but effectively clamping their growing out of control lust for now, while Kushina whimpered cutely at loss of contact of her breasts with Naruto's hand. Realising what they were doing, Kushina using the last bit of her strength pushed herself up before sitting on the wet green grass besides Naruto, a huge blush on her face as she gazed sideways with a cute expression. Naruto himself immediately stood up, his eyes widened with a blush as deep as Kushina's on his cheek, but his hormones still in effect had made him a little weak on his knees combined with his foot slipping on the wet slippery grass made him fall towards the sitting, erotic &amp; a wet form of Kushina. She squeaked when both of them fell on the grass, Naruto on top of Kushina, rain still pouring down heavily.<p>

They both blushed furiously, Naruto because of the feeling of her warm bust pushed against his chest while Kushina because her breasts were sensitive, making her feel good when his warm muscled chest rubbed against her hardened nipples, due to a mixture of cold & pleasure. Their eyes met for a brief second, her deep violet eyes meeting his oceanic blue, before they jerked their head sideways in opposite directions, cute blushes on both of their faces while Kushina's red hair was sprawled on the grassy training ground, which was rare itself in Konoha. Slowly, Naruto got off her as he went to sit beside her while Kushina frowned a bit at the lack of contact, it was like he made her full whenever they touched. But she was his mother, it was wrong wasn't it? But then, why was she feeling like this about her own son? What if he hated her now? What if he thought that she was a freak? What if he didn't want to be anywhere near her from now on? It almost broke her heart to even think about it. Meanwhile, these were the same thoughts that were flooding Naruto's mind.

Not wanting to lose him, she sat up abruptly, surprising Naruto before grabbing his wet but warm hand in both of her soft & cold hands.

"N-Naru-kun...I'm extremely sorry...please don't leave me...I..I don't know what happened dattebane!", she pleaded with a quivering tone while her lower lip trembled, her eyes wet while her hands trembled around his hand. A shocked Naruto looked into her violet eyes, his heart encased in warmth at hearing that she too didn't want him to leave her. He slowly put his firm hand on her trembling hands, squeezing them as if reassuring her. Bending down he kissed her soft & creamy wet hands, making her blush before his famous foxy grin settled on his face making her heart pound faster, her blush deepening while again there was that feeling of butterflies dancing around in her stomach.

"I'll never leave you Kaa-san! That's a promise of a lifetime dattebayo!", he said making Kushina's heart swell with joy, her eyes sparkling with tears of happiness before she lunged at him like a baby kitsune does at its object of affection, making Ayumi proud. Naruto accepted her with open arms as she rubbed her cheek fondly against his chest while he rubbed her back softly.

"M-My s-sochi...I love you s-so much...I will never leave y-you again...I promise", she cried onto his chest as she remembered the events of horrible night which she had experienced a few minutes ago. Meanwhile Naruto's nose started to twitch before he, "Aa...Aa...AACHOO!", sneezed, catching cold because of the cold rain. Kushina giggled at his cute face that followed the sneeze before she cupped his whispered cheek lovingly, the touch meaning much more than what a mother's touch should be.

"Naru-kun, you'll catch a cold if you stay out here in the cold rain", she chided with a smile while softly pinching his whiskered cheeks making Naruto pout.

"But what about you, you'll catch a cold too", he said with a scrunched up face as he tried to hold the second sneeze while Kushina snorted, her arms still wrapped around his torso.

"Hn, it would be a million years before your Kaa-san catches a co-Aachoo!", she said before sneezing cutely as Naruto hugged her more tightly while trying to hold in his laughter before he broke into fits of it. Kushina blushed in embarrassment before pouting cutely at him making Naruto want to kiss her into the oblivion. He blushed at that thought while his laughing slowly subsided before he kissed her on the cheek.

"You're so cute Kaa-san", he said with a pink tint on his cheeks, a sheepish smile on his face while Kushina was blushing furiously before she released him from the hug and turned into the opposite direction to hide her blush.

"Sh-Shutup! Don't try to embarrass me dattebane!", she said while holding her pink tinted cheeks before she shivered from the cold.

'_Well they're already acting more of a couple than a mother & son'_, thought Ayumi with an amused smirk, _'But it's good to see you again Kushi-chan. I missed you'_, thought the strongest bijuu as a sad smile came upon her face while Naruto covered Kushina with his trenchcoat, the rain still pouring as heavily as ever.

"Kaa-san, where should we go now? I can't take you back to the village right now considering your weakness, and besides we have to also report to Hokage-sama about you. We can't have you treated at Konoha's hospital right now, there are so many things unexplained", he said while Kushina nodded weakly.

"There's a h-hideout not far away from here, we can spend some time with each other before announcing my arrival", she said before blushing at what she said.

'_Why am I feeling this way? Naru-kun...there's something in you that even Minato couldn't hope to have'_, she thought with a small smile, before squeaking when Naruto suddenly picked her bridal style. Now, those who knew her would have trouble picking up their jaws right now if they heard her squeak, cause she was typically known as a fiery kunoichi, nobody had seen her soft side except few people like Uzumaki Mito and the four ice queens. Even Minato rarely saw this side of her, considering he was the fourth hokage and the apprentice of Jiraiya, she usually stayed strong in his presence and never let herself be wavered. But in front of Naruto, she felt like she could be herself all the time. She kind of felt secure in his presence.

'_You're my knight, aren't you Naru-kun'_, she thought with a giggle while Naruto looked at her awkwardly before dashing towards the hideout Kushina had pointed at.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's Forest-One Mile North of Hokage's Monument-Hideout<strong>

* * *

><p>At the centre of a well hidden clearing, Naruto saw a moderate sized wooden compound with a typical sliding door on an elevated platform. Strangely, there was no smell of rotten wood and the wood looked fresh even under the rain. Giggling at his confused face, Kushina replied.<p>

"Fuinjutus Naru-kun", she said while Naruto eyes widened when he remembered that the one he was holding was a seal master on a whole other level, that even Jiraiya didn't compare to. Kushina saw his eyes sparkle the same way her's was sparkling when she saw Uzumaki Mito write a complicated seal in mid-air with her chakra alone.

"Kaa-san! You are a seal master right? Can you please teach me? Please! Please'ttebayo!", he pleaded with barely contained excitement while Kushina blinked at his energetic pleading.

"Of course, I'll teach you everything that I know", she said with a smile before, "YEAH!", Naruto hurled her into the midair in his moment of sky rocketing excitement.

"Kyaah!", Kushina screamed at the sudden movement before Naruto caught her, a sheepish grin on her face while Kushina glared at him playfully before he muttered 'sorry'. Putting her down delicately on her request, he watched as she put her palm in midair, channelling chakra through her hand and to his amazement a complex light blue coloured seal formed in midair with just her chakra while he could see a transparent barrier now somewhat visible. Quietly activating his Rinnegan, he was quite shocked to see her chakra of sky blue colour, lighter shade than that of normal blue chakra before his eyes turned back to normal.

'_And there's also that matter of Sharingan, which I presume that even she doesn't know about'_, he thought while observing her with bated breath.

"**Memori Yugami No Shunshin No Baria: Kai! **(Memory Distortion Teleportation Barrier: Release)", she said after going through a couple of handseals before slamming her hand on the empty circle, surrounding which were a pattern of intricate seals in concentric circles expanding outwards. Four lines of black coloured seals perpendicular to each other came expanding outwards (just like in summoning technique) before the barrier slowly dissipated until only the circle containing seals was left, which was currently rotating slowly around its centre while Kushina signalled him to follow her. Once inside the barrier, she motioned Naruto to come near the seal.

"Kaa-san, what does this seal do?", he asked curiously.

"This is one of the many seals that I created. When this barrier is active, anyone who touches it is transported to the Shodaime's head while the memory of this location is wiped out from his mind. Thus the name of Memory Distortion Teleportation Barrier", she explained with a hint of pride in her voice while Naruto watched her in admiration.

"That's so COOL!", he said with shining eyes while Kushina puffed her chest in pride making Naruto blush.

'_Fuck Ninjutsu, Grab Fuinjutsu!'_, he thought as he watched the seals in wonder.

"Naru-kun, put your palm on this empty circle like I did and channel your chakra through it", she said while signalling towards the rotating circle. Seeing as he trusted her with closed eyes, he put his hand on the empty space. Expecting his hand to just go through, he was surpised when he felt something invisible touch his hands while Kushina watched his gaping expression with an amusing smile. Naruto channelled his chakra through the seal, and much to Kushina's shock, it started to glow white and before it settled back to its original black colour.

'_What...the...fuck'_, she thought with her widened eyes as she saw Naruto studying the seal like a child in the midst of a candy store.

"N-Naru-kun...what w-was that? Your chakra...white?", she asked as he surprise slowly turned into confusion while Naruto grinned cheekily at her.

"What? If you can have special chakra, then why can't I?", he said before gazing at the hideout. Kushina narrowed her eyes at him, although she had missed his thirteen years, she wanted to know everything that had happened up until now.

"Uzumaki Naruto", she said as he jerked his head back in surprise to look towards her before he gulped nervously seeing her serious expression. The aura was the same as that she was radiating when she was being cautious of him.

"You're going to answer me everything that I ask, every single one of it. If you think you can hide anything from me, then you'll know why was I considered an equal of the Yondaime Hokage and was known throughout the elemental countries", she said in her threatening tone while Naruto nodded furiously, but felt warmth flow through his body at her protective nature.

"Good then!", she said with a smile making Naruto's heart beat faster at that angelic smile, a small blush on his face.

"Aww...is my Naru-chan blushing? If you have a crush on your mother, you can just tell me so, ne?", she said with a teasing tone before Naruto sputtered incoherently, a furious blush on his face.

'_So you want to play like that huh? You're days as a prankmaster are over Kaa-san'_, he thought with a challenging look before he retorted.

"Oh, who wouldn't have a crush on you considering the way you were moaning", he said with an oh-so-innocent look making Kushina remember that scene, a dark red blush on her face while blood trickled down her nose.

"WH-WHO SAID I WAS MOANING?", she yelled while wiping the blood furiously before Naruto tilted his head in a thinking pose.

"Oh...so those were cries of pleasure...yep, I knew it", he said while nodding to himself whereas Kushina opened her mouth, closed it then again opened it but couldn't find anything to comeback, her face as red as tomato.

'_Who knew my Kaa-san was a closet pervert',_ he thought with a sweatdrop.

'_Oh, I knew Naruto-kun'_, said Ayumi while Naruto's eyebrows twitched at hearing her innocent voice.

'_AND YOU'RE PROBABLY THE BIGGEST PERVERT ON THIS PLANET! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING THERE? AND WHAT DID YOU EVEN DO EXACTLY'_, he shouted in his head making Ayumi cover her sensitive ears before she replied.

'_Ah...hehe...well I released some pheromones to help you get comfortable with Kushi-chan. And don't you dare deny it, I know you had a crush on her from the moment you saw her and from way she's been acting, she more than likely likes you too'_, said Ayumi while Naruto again blushed.

'_B-But she's my mother'_, he thought inwardly before she snorted.

'_Oh shutup! I don't care if she's your mother or your sister, the fact that she's a woman and you like her and that she most probably likes you is enough for me. Remember, love crosses all boundaries'_, she said while Naruto blinked.

'_But...do I even love her that way. It's so soon!'_, he said to her inwardly.

'_Maybe not now, but most probably you'll fall for her in the future and vice versa'_, she said while Naruto couldn't help but strangely feel happy at those words.

"Naruto..", Naruto zoomed back to reality when he heard his mother's serious voice, "show me your seal", Naruto looked at her in confusion before he realised that she was the one who had designed the seal.

"But...why?", he asked before she replied.

"I want to see your memories up until now, I can't wait any longer...I know they probably wouldn't be pleasant considering that several other anbu were with the old monkey that night who had watched Minato seal Ayumi-chan into you, so they probably would've spread that news to the whole village", she said with clenched fists as she prepared herself for the nightmare that was Naruto's life.

"B-But...how is watching my memories related to the seal", he asked.

"I designed the seal in such a way that it is connected to your brain. For example- whenever you're angry or high on emotions, the seal automatically leaks some youki into your chakra coils. Thus I can use the seal as a pathway to access your memories", she said while Naruto looked at her in wonder, he really now was eager to learn fuinjutsu. Kushina vision slowly started to become hazy as her weakness was taking a toll on her even with the Uzumaki regeneration. She was about to fall when suddenly she found herself in Naruto's arms.

"You should rest inside now Kaa-san, you can watch my memories later. Besides...it isn't like they are pleasant", he said with sad eyes while Kushina just smiled at him with half lidded eyes before cupping his cheeks lovingly.

"But...they are my Naru-kun's memories", she said before closing her eyes while snuggling into his chest. Naruto smiled at her while clearing a strand of her wet hair from her face before kissing her forehead. A small smile formed on Kushina's face before she snuggled deeply into his warm chest while Naruto took her bridal style into the wooden compound.

* * *

><p><strong>So...um...did you liked it? I myself am not sure if it was good. But this chapter by far was the most difficult one for me to write. And like one reviewer said in the previous chapter, I really put my heart &amp; soul into these kind of chapters. So if anyone of you think that Naruto overreacted, was an emo, or a pansy in this chapter then I suggest that you imagine yourself in his position before flaming me. Also if any of you have problem with the lime scene, then flame our cute Ayumi-chan. But besides that, do tell me if the lime scene was good or not? And lastly, please don't forget that I'm new at this stuff and that this is my first fic, so please go easy on me. But I'm not asking you to not point out mistakes to me. If you have suggestions or ideas regarding anything in this fic, do review or PM me. Oh and lastly, the scene where Naruto cries and stuff because he thinks Kushina doesn't love him, if you read that scene while playing <strong>_**'Yamagasumi'**_** or **_**'Samidare'**_**(preferably the latter) from Naruto Shippuuden OST 2, then I'm sure you'll find that scene touching like I did. **

**As for the next chapter, I'll be really going out of town this week, so it should take couple of days than normal. But let me give you a sneak peek, the next chapter Naruto, Kushina & Ayumi discuss with each other, the function of his curse mark gets a bit revealed and some other interesting things will be revealed. Also beware you punky ass Uchiha lickin', jinchuriki flamin' villagers, face the wrath of Kushi-hime (BUHAHAHA!). **

**So until then, if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask (except about the future plot), I'll try to reply as fast as I can. So please review, take care and...oh, there's nothing left to say anything more dattebayo! So Ja Ne!**

**N6023**


	14. The Jinchuriki's Mark

**Heya fellas! So here's the fourteeth chapter you've been waiting for and thanks for reviewing the last chapter. I'm glad that you guys liked it and sorry if the lime was early, but I just felt like it. So without anything left to say, here's the next chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-14-The Jinchuriki's Mark<strong>

* * *

><p>"You should rest inside now Kaa-san, you can watch my memories later. Besides...it isn't like they are pleasant", he said with sad eyes while Kushina just smiled at him with half lidded eyes before cupping his cheeks lovingly.<p>

"But...they are my Naru-kun's memories", she said before slowly closing her eyes while snuggling into his chest. Naruto smiled at her while clearing a strand of her wet hair from her face before kissing her forehead. A small smile formed on Kushina's face before she snuggled deeply into his warm chest while Naruto took her bridal style into the wooden compound.

Closing the door, he noticed that it was one big spacious hall and no stairs whatsoever. There were several chairs surrounding a small wooden polished dining table & sofas for sitting arrangement along with a fireplace which made him sigh in relief. There were several photo frames of Minato & Kushina on the wall making him confused. Across the spacious hall, there was a small kitchen along with a bathroom. Laying Kushina gently onto a sofa in front of the fireplace which he lighted afterwards to provide her with some warmth, he proceeded to find something in the kitchen as he was hungry as hell. Along the way, he noticed a large wardrobe by the window. Opening it, he was surprised to find several copies of the same outfit he was wearing right then and along with other copies of some other outfit, whose torso was black in colour with red trimmings along the shoulder, forearms & rib region. But what made his eyes sparkle was the same swirling sign he had on his outfit, except that it seemed like it was being strengthened by bright yellow flames as the concentric swirls were covered by a flame design truly making it awesome in his eyes, which he deduced must be Kushina's. Deciding that he had enough spare clothes to replace his dirty ones, he proceeded to take a shower.

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: After Ten Minutes<strong>

* * *

><p>Naruto walked out of the bathroom with a refreshed look on his face, only a towel to cover his private parts. His wet hair sticking out in all directions as he proceeded to the wardrobe to wear his favourite gear. Just as he was taking out the clothes, he heard Kushina's soft voice, it looked to be like she was mumbling something. Blinking in confusion, he went to the sofa and looked over it to see her pained expression while she was stirring in her sleep, sweat pouring down her beautiful face as she clenched the cape that Naruto had covered her with with tightly.<p>

"Na-Naruto-kun...no...don't leave me... I c-can't li-live without you...so-sochi", she mumbled as tears started to pour out of her clenched eyes while she grit her teeth. Knowing that she must be having a horrible nightmare, he immediately went around the sofa before he took her hand in his.

"Kaa-san...wake up. It's just a nightmare", he shook her softly while rubbing her hand with his other hand but she didn't budge as she continued to stir, while more tears came out.

"Jiji...call the medics...h-he can't die", she again mumbled shocking Naruto even more.

'_What the hell is she dreaming about?'_, he thought with a frown.

'_She must be dreaming about you dying in front of her or something'_, said Ayumi who sounded concerned for her long time friend. Releasing that he had enough, he quickly took her in a hug by pulling her in a sitting position with him making her open her eyes with a snap, her panting echoing through the quiet compound with only the occasional thunder outside to interrupt it.

"Kaa-san...it was only a dream...don't cry...I'm not gonna die", he said softly as he rubbed her back soothingly while flowing his other through her soft silky otherwise wet red hair. She started sobbing softly as Naruto just held her like that for sometime.

"H-He was g-going to ki-kill you...and alm-almost did it", she said while clutching her 'Naru-kun' to her tightly, like she never wanted to let him go.

"Heh...you think I'm gonna die...not a chance in hell! I'll become Hokage and anyone who tries to threaten me or those who are precious to me will have to get over me first, which I hightly doubt they would", he said playfully as a small smile formed on Kushina's lips. She blushed when she felt his hard muscles rubbing against her, making her remember that rain event. Blushing up a storm she jerked back from the hug making Naruto look at her in confusion. Not meeting his gaze, she clutched the fabric of her gown on her lap tightly. Releasing his state, he also blushed and the next thing she heard was the sound of door slamming. Putting her hand on her chest, she could feel her heart racing before calming herself, but couldn't help the giggle which escaped her lips.

'_Naru-kun is soooo cute'_, she thought as she looked around the compound, it looked the same as she remembered. Looking around, the photo frames of her & Minato made her frown, although she still loved him, if only a bit, she couldn't help but feel hatred for the guy. But still, she was grateful to him for giving her Naruto, but utterly hated him to destroy her son's childhood. She looked back when she heard the click sound of the door opening to see Naruto standing there in his father's outfit. He looked even more handsome than Minato in that outfit making her blush upon seeing his fresh out of bath form. Naruto was also a bit nervous as to how he should proceed with this situation, but thankfully his stomach saved him as a loud growl filled the eerie silence. Kushina giggled at his son's antics while Naruto couldn't help but marvel at her beauty. Her giggling was stopped by another growl, now from her stomach making Naruto chuckle at her cute embarrassed face. Creating a shadow clone, he ordered him to bring some ramen from Ichiraku's much to the giddiness of Kushina who was dying to eat some ramen.

"You know Ichiraku Ramen?", she asked with a glint in her eyes while Naruto just blinked at her.

"Ofcourse! Ichiraku's ramen is the best in the world dattebayo", he said while she nodded at him with a grin, oh they were gonna have some fun in the village. It's gonna one long month before the finals, with two Uzumaki prankmasters now creating havoc in it. Immediately becoming serious when she remembered what she was about to do before she fell asleep, she motioned him to come closer making Naruto a bit nervous, his stride a bit stiff as he approached her.

"Naru-kun, show me your seal. It's time to catch up with what I've missed for thirteen years", she said in an authoritative tone making Naruto fidget with himself, wondering what would happen after she had seen his memories, somehow he knew it wouldn't be bad, it would be much worse. Hesitantly opening his flak jacket, he lifted his dark blue shirt making Kushina blush a bit at seeing his chiselled but not overly muscular abs before she regained her composure. Naruto channelled his chakra through the seal while Kushina began inspecting it before her eyes widened.

"Quarter part of the seal is damaged?", she said questioningly while he just nodded.

"You'll see it in my memories Kaa-san", he said while her eyes softened at his innocent eyes. Oh how those whisker marks & those bright blue orbs attracted her making her just want to kiss him and never let him go.

'_Shit! What the hell? He's my son...I-I shouldn't be thinking about him like that...but...AAAH! It's so confusing'_, she thought while Naruto's eyes widened when a sky blue chakra engulfed her fingertips on her right hand, before she gently put her fingertips on the seal as she closed her eyes. Naruto watched as her expression remained angry for the most part as she gritted her teeth while occasionally a small smile would grace her beautiful face, which he deduced must be from when he had made Kurenai, Anko and two others his friends. He frowned when he came to realise that he still hadn't met Yugi & Tsume, he would have to ask Kurenai about that. He also noticed a proud smile came upon her face for a moment, then a face of concern, then again a small smile after which he just sighed and scratched his head. He didn't knew that it was possible to change expressions so quickly.

He looked down when he felt her retract her fingers as he dropped his shirt back. Now he became extremely nervous when he noticed her eyes red with black slits, her nails lengthened as she gritted her teeth. Noticing that she was about to go on a rampage, he quickly hugged her with all his might while he applied his white chakra which succeeded in nullifying the youki she was releasing as well as calming her raging mind, surprising Kushina a bit but not much, considering that she had just viewed his memories. Her motherly instincts waking up, she held him tightly to her as tears streamed down her face because of how her 'Naru-kun' was treated in this shithole of a village.

"Those bastards...I'm going to kill them all", she gritted through her teeth while Naruto couldn't help but smile at how she was angry with the way those villagers treated him, it meant so much for him to know that she cared for him. Yes, she was his mother, and mothers love their children. But he never took that for granted, like that emo prick of his teammate did with his mother when they were kids.

'_Naru-kun...no matter what happens...I'll give you as much love as I can even if have to become something much more than your mother'_, she thought with determination as she lovingly caressed his blonde hair, before her eyes widened when she remembered something or rather some things. She jerked back to look into his confused eyes while Naruto looked into her shining eyes.

'_His DNA has completely changed...that means I'm no longer his biological mother...but why does it makes me kind of...happy, shouldn't it make me sad?'_, she thought, as she felt this strange excitement at the fact that they could be something more than she thought, she knew she loved him so very much. Watching his memories made her love for him sky rocket if that was even possible. Now she too saw in him those charming qualities which the ice queens saw, his determination, his foxy grin which almost made her heart melt when she saw it the first time, his brightly personality which seemed to lighten anyone's day, she could just go on about him. Shaking her head and storing those thoughts for later, she remembered something which had made her extremely proud.

Seeing her eyes shining with a glint like that, he knew was gonna get crushed into a hug and he had an idea why.

"NARU-KUN!", she shouted with glee before again taking him into a bone crushing hug, while Naruto's face became blue like that of Kisame.

"Oh my god! I can't believe you actually awakened Rinnegan! Holy fuck, my son is so awesome! Tell me how does it feel to hold such a legendary doujutsu! Tell me dattebane!", she said non-stop while hugging him as tight as she could, it was like she wanted him to melt with her while a chirping smile graced her beautiful face. She was very much proud of her son & student for what he endured in that Tsukiyomi to awaken it and the training he went through afterwards, and the latter for being such an excellent teacher to her son. Though she was deeply saddened by the fact that Itachi had to take the blame for killing his good-for-nothing clan. It also made her almost cry when he told Naruto that that Fugaku-teme had used Mikoto as his cover, that bastard! But right now, she just wanted to show Naruto just how proud she was of him, like he always wanted. But those villagers WILL face her wrath, that's for sure, the only thing Naruto succeeded in was delaying the inevitable.

"K-Kaa...", he tried to say as his face now was horrendously blue making Kushina jerk back in embarrassment, as she giggled sheepishly at her actions.

"Ah..hehe...got carried away'ttebane", she said before taking his hands in hers, her eyes shining like pearls.

"Please show it to me'ttebane!", she said with a bright smile while Naruto sweatdropped at her antics. But Kushina couldn't help herself, it wasn't everyday you see Rinnegan and especially when your son wields it, her excitement was bubbling on her face ready to erupt at any moment.

Naruto chuckled before closing his eyes while he smirked mentally. Kushina watched him with bated breath, while his look of concentration, eyebrows scrunched up made him sooo cute that she just wanted to kiss him...again. But it was getting difficult to resist these urges of hers as she spent more time with him.

"Are you ready Kaa-san?", asked with a smirk while he could feel Kushina nod furiously, her fists in front of her chest like a child.

"Are you ready for the ultimate doujutsu of all times?", he again asked with a smirk while Kushina just again nodded with a bit of irritation on her face.

"Are you like... really ready Kaa-san?", he asked barely holding his jaw, as he drank in his laughter while Kushina's eyebrows twitched in irritation.

"Hai...just open your eyes Naru-kun", she said before again watching his eyes with concentration.

"Soooo...are you sure? I mean-"

"JUST OPEN THEM DAMMIT!", she screamed while Ayumi was rolling in laughter inside his head making his own laughter difficult to control.

'_Oh...hehehe..eheheehee...only her son can make Kushi-chan so worked up...hehehe...oh this is so good'_, said Ayumi while other small animals played with her in Naruto's mindscape.

"Okay...geez...talk about getting impatient..", he said while Kushina again, for the third time prepared her mind for the mind blowing eyes that she was going to see. The world around her slowed down as Naruto slowly opened his eyelids.

"TADAA!", he quickly opened his eyes while Kushina face vaulted at seeing his same blue eyes instead of Rinnegan. Now he couldn't control himself as he fell down backwards and began rolling in laughter at the face Kushina was currently making. Meanwhile, Ayumi too wasn't doing much better.

"Oh Kaa-san...look at your face...it's so cute", he said in between his laughter, not noticing his slipup while Kushina blushed, before pouting at him to possiblly hide it. Naruto's laughter stopped abruptly when he realised what he had said as a blush creeped up on his face.

"Ahm...what I meant to say was that...well...that you're cute & all when you get pranked or something...well normally too you are cute...but..um...you get cuter...ahm...just forget that", he said with his blush growing considerably darker, but it couldn't be compared to Kushina's face right now which now was steaming as red as a tomato.

'_Tsk Tsk Tsk Naruto-kun...there's no denying it. Just tell her that you have a crush on her'_, said Ayumi much to the embarrassment of Naruto.

'_Shut up Ayumi!'_, he exclaimed while Ayumi giggled.

'_Only for how long will you & her be able to ignore these feelings...I wonder'_, said Ayumi while Naruto just sighed. He knew what she said was true but he just wanted to be her son for a while, as long as he could. He somehow knew he was delaying the inevitable. Meanwhile Kushina's eyes widened when she felt a calm & peaceful aura wash over the compound just like she had seen & experienced in his memories. She looked up in his eyes and gasped at his glowing purple eyes. Slowly standing on her feet as the wooden floor creaked under her feet in the silence, she edged towards him before seeing his eyes. She couldn't help but be mesmerised by those powerful purple orbs that now her son held.

"So I guess Kami has her own way for repairing my shitty life by giving me this gifted doujutsu...along with you", he said with a smile while Kushina smiled back at him. His eyes widened when he felt soft wet lips on his cheeks, making him blush a bit while Kushina retracted back for Naruto to see her blushing face, but along with an angelic smile on her beautiful face making his heart skip a beat.

'_Beautiful...'_, he thought with a blush while Ayumi smirked.

'_If they keep spending time with each other, which I know they will...and at the rate these two are going...it wouldn't be long before they fell for each other'_, thought Ayumi as she rubbed a baby fox's ears which yipped in delight making her smile. Kushina hugged Naruto lovingly to her, while sensually flowing her hand through his blonde locks, one of the most peaceful & happy smiles on her face.

"I'm proud of you...Naru-kun...very much, always remember that", she whispered with a content sigh while Naruto's heart leaped with happiness at hearing those words, which he had ached to hear since the academy, no...well since he could remember.

"Invading Hokage's tower...learning Kage Bunshin in one hour...successfully evading top class Anbu & Jounin...treating a girl like Sakura with respect who didn't deserve it even though it was a part of your mask, but I can tell that you cared for her and do even now...overcoming your fear of battle in your first C-rank mission without anyone's guidance... foolishly but bravely fighting a shinobi like Zabuza head on with no fear...penetrating a boy's dark & dulled mind with a ray of hope, giving him a purpose in life...gaining strength from those who you want to protect...hehe...training so hard under Kakashi to control Ayumi-chan's chakra...facing Orochimaru head on without any fear for your teammate's safety...seeing your loved ones die in front of you and pull out of it as bright as ever...any mother would be proud of a son like you", she said while keeping her head on his shoulder, while Naruto tightened his grip on her. He was so happy...he didn't know how to describe it...she recognised him, his every ounce of hard work, his every small accomplishment, she appreciated him, his existence.

"K-Kaa-san...thank you", said Naruto in a choked voice as he stroked her long red hair while Kushina just smiled at her baby boy.

"Also having the galls to make out heatedly with a bijuu is something very few people possess", she said teasingly, a small blush on her face while Naruto's face stormed a dark blush as he remembered that event.

"K-Kaa-san...that was an accident!", he said as he tried to jerk back from the hug in embarrassment but Kushina kept her arm lock tight on his back.

Meanwhile Ayumi too sighed dreamily as she remembered that stunt, it was the best first kiss she could have gotten while she wiped a trickle of blood down her nose.

'_It was a very pleasant accident indeed'_, she thought while giggling perversely. Naruto's eyebrows twitched when he heard perverted giggling of Ayumi inside his head.

'_Shutup Ayumi!'_, he said inwardly while he felt that their hug was becoming longer than what it should be.

'_Oh...don't tell me you didn't enjoy it Naruto-kun'_, she said in a sultry voice making Naruto lose his composure.

'_FUCK YOU AYUMI!'_, he screamed inside his head.

'_Gladly Naruto-kun! I yours to fuck...and only YOURS'_, she said seductively while the possessive nature of the statement woke up Naruto Jr.

'_Sh-Shutup Ayumi...I'm warning you...what happened to that concerned & innocent bijuu when I first met you'_, he said inwardly while Kushina blushed when she felt Naruto Jr. poking her.

'_No way! Is he having perverted thoughts'_, she thought before realising it must be Ayumi's doing considering that Ayumi was the one who pulled that rain stunt between them, something which she had saw in Naruto memories.

'_Ah...that Naruto-kun, I had to be serious considering that I was in an emotional turmoil after seeing your memories, so I was worried for you. You can say that it was in a spur of the moment'_, she said with a smile while Naruto couldn't help the small smile which graced his face, he was deeply touched that she was so worried about him after seeing his memories. Kushina released Naruto from the hug with a sigh, she just wanted to stay in his embrace.

"So Naru-kun...I see you have to have multiple wives, ne? And also, I see that you've met Kurenai-chan & Anko-chan", said Kushina much to the embarrassment of Naruto.

"H-Hai...those bastard council members just want my doujutsu & nothing else, I'm only a tool to them", he said while clenching his fists whereas Kushina put a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Their time will come Naruto-kun, but for now, I want you to enter your mindscape. I will follow you there through the seal, I want to know how she sent me here that night", she said while Naruto nodded, not surprised that she could enter his mindscape via the mindscape.

'_Pull me in Ayumi-chan'_, he said as he closed his eyes before he woke up on the grass of the same dense beautiful forest that he had created. Noticing his surroundings, he found that it was night time in his mindscape, the moon shone brightly while fireflies flew around him as if welcoming him. It was truly a sight to behold.

"Amazing...your mindscape is beautiful Naru-kun", said Kushina out of nowhere as she looked around the luscious forest and the glowing fireflies in wonder. Naruto blushed at the compliment, he wasn't used to this after all.

"Kushi-chan!", Naruto & Kushina turned their heads to see a red blur followed by Kushina taken off her feet as both Ayumi & Kushina landed on the grass with Ayumi on top of her.

"It's been so long since I met you!", said Ayumi with a glowing smile as she hugged her long time friend while Kushina hugged her back with a smile.

"Hehe...long time for you Ayumi-chan...it's been only hours for me since I saw you", she said with a giggle while Ayumi pouted at her.

"You totally ruined the moment Kushi-chan", said Ayumi as she stood up along with Kushina, who scratched her cheek in embarrassment while you could see Naruto standing there with a huge blush on his face, as he wiped the blood down his nose with his forearms. He had totally lost it when he saw Ayumi on top of Kushina, both hugging each other. His eyes were specifically drawn to their breasts squashing against each other making him harder instantly. He immediately turned away from them while cursing the growing bulge in his pants.

'_Damn it! They look like twin sisters...and with their ...No No! I've got to think of something else. Alright...think about Sasuke giving a blowjob to Orochimaru...ahh crap! I think I'm gonna puke'_, thought Naruto with a disgusted look on his face while he mentally shuddered, but it successfully made Naruto Jr. sleep again.

"So Ayumi-chan...care to explain what did you do when your claw was about to pierce me", said Kushina in a serious tone while Ayumi immediately understood what she was talking about, but it confused Naruto.

"At that moment, I created a time displacement rift just in front of you. After that, with a gust of my chakra, I pushed you into that hole as fast as I could", she said with a proud look on her face while Kushina nodded with her before a look of confusion crossed her face.

"But I thought that you were in a genjutsu", she said while Ayumi just nodded.

"Hai, you're right but I was trying to fight it ever since I got captured in it. Just at the moment when that Yondaime slammed a Rasengan into that bastard mask ningen, his genjutsu slipped up a bit. That was all the time I needed, I knew that there was no other choice but to send you into the future", said Ayumi while Kushina immediately hugged her, who what she could call, sister like figure.

"Thank you Ayumi-chan...you don't know how much I owe you", said Kushina with a smile while Naruto too smiled at them. He was eternally gratefully to Ayumi, first she constantly tried to help hm for thirteen years of his life and now he comes to know of this.

'_Thank you...Ayumi-chan...I won't forget this ...ever'_, thought Naruto with a small smile as he fondly watched Ayumi & Kushina.

"Kushi-chan, I wanted to ask you something?", said Ayumi while Kushina tilted her head cutely making Naruto blush a bit.

"What is it Ayumi-chan?", said Kushina while releasing Ayumi from the hug.

"Were any of your parents by any chance an Uchiha?", said Ayumi surprising Kushina & Naruto, the latter of whom understood after a while of what she was talking about.

"I...never knew my parents, or even if I do I don't remember them considering that Ushiogakure was destroyed when I was little", said Kushina while Ayumi nodded with her.

"Ushiogakure?", said Naruto questioningly while Kushina looked at him with a sad smile.

"Some other day Naru-kun...I'll tell you everything...I promise", she said while Naruto, just hearing her soft voice and seeing those eyes, he knew that he could trust her blindly unlike someone like his jiji. He still loved his grandfather like figure, but couldn't help but feel resentment towards him at the way he forbade any of his friends from approaching him. Even if it was to protect him, but he still remembered those lonely nights where he cried himself to sleep, he could never forget those nightmares.

"Then there's not any other possible reason that you could possess the Sharingan", said Ayumi with a serious expression on her face shocking Kushina to her very core.

"Sharingan?...The hell you are talking about?", asked Kushina in confusion while Ayumi herself blinked in confusion.

"Don't tell me you didn't notice when you crashed into Naruto-kun in this timeline. You're eyes were red with one tomoe. You should have atleast noticed the chakra pathways of Naruto", said Ayumi while Naruto nodded with her as he came to stand near them. Kushina's eyes widened as she remembered that indeed for a few seconds, she saw chakra pathways of Naruto. But seeing that she didn't know what was going on, combined with her Herculene-sized concern for Naruto, she completely ignored that fact.

"Now you tell me about it...hehe...I kinda forgot about it dattebane", said Kushina while rubbing the back of her head, a sheepish smile on her face while Ayumi & Naruto sweatdropped.

'_Only an Uzumaki would be capable to ignoring such a thing'_, thought Ayumi while Naruto just chuckled at his mother's antics, he couldn't help but get attracted to her clumsy & happy going persona.

"Alriiiiight...then would you kindly close your eyes and concentrate your chakra behind your eyes Kushina-sama", said Ayumi in a mock respect, annoyed by her careless behaviour while Kushina just rolled her eyes at her.

"Yeah yeah...keep doing that furball", said Kushina dismissively while a vein popped on Ayumi's forehead.

"What did you say to me you tomato face!", yelled Ayumi heatedly while Kushina's eyebrows twitched, she absolutely hated that nickname.

"What's your problem Ayumi-baka?", yelled Kushina, both of their faces now inches away from each other as they grinded their foreheads against each other, sparks flying comically from the friction.

"I'm tired by your carefree attitude you bakamono! You're twenty two already, WHEN WOULD YOU GROW UP?", yelled Ayumi as her voice increased in volume.

"LIKE YOU GREW UP LIVING FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS", shouted Kushina while Ayumi's face turned burning red in anger. Meanwhile Naruto watched this scene in stunned silence, they were bickering like everyday sisters. If someone had told him a month ago, Kyuubi No Kitsune and his MOTHER getting on each other's nerves like this in front of him, he would've died of laughter.

"Um...I think you two should-", tried to interfere Naruto only to himself be interfered.

"SHUTUP!", both yelled in unison while he sweatdropped at their antics as they continued to throw insults at each other. Deciding that enough was enough, he went to forcibly separate them as he stood between them, his back facing Ayumi, a stern expression on his face.

"Stop it both of you, we don't have time for this", he said in an authoritative tone which would've made Hiashi proud. Both of them blushed in embarrassment, as they muttered 'Naruto-kun/Naru-kun saved your ass this time' in unison. Sporting a devilish grin on her face, Ayumi jumped on Naruto's back while wrapping her slender arms around his neck, her breasts squishing against his back making him blush furiously while Kushina narrowed her eyes at Ayumi.

"Aww...thank you Naruto-kun...you're my saviour aren't you...you would save me from evil Kushi-chan, right?", said Ayumi while Kushina could feel fire in the pit of her stomach as she watched Ayumi flirt with his son.

"A-Ayumi-chan...g-get off me", he stuttered while blushing as he felt her soft but plump mounds pressed against his back. His eyes widened when Kushina blurred out of thin air and appeared in front of him before taking him into a hug, a devilish grin on her face too. Feeling another pair of soft pillows pressed against his chest, he looked to see her cleavage which the loose gown was failing miserably to hide as Kushina hugged him tightly to her.

Making eye contact, Kushina & Ayumi nodded at each with a grin as they continued to hug him.

"Naru-kun...you would protect your Kaa-san right?", said Kushina as she continued to press her D-cups against his chest while eventually Naruto fainted from the overload, with one last thought.

'_This is... heaven'_, before slipping into unconsciousness. Both of them blinked at seeing him go limp as they both smiled at each other. Putting Naruto down tenderly, Kushina kissed his forehead & his cheek lovingly as Ayumi smiled longingly at his peaceful face.

"So...let's try it Kushi-chan...even though he's unconscious, Naruto-kun will remember everything of whatever we talk about here in his mindscape seeing as the seal is connected with his mind", said Ayumi while Kushina nodded. Closing her eyes, Kushina concentrated her chakra from her physical body outside. Opening them, she immediately closed her eyes with a scrunched up look on her face while Ayumi watched this in confusion.

"All I see is red chakra...", Kushina opened her violet eyes while Ayumi nodded in understanding.

"Yeah...seems you have to try it outside. The immense amount of my youki will probably damage your Sharingan. But I think you get the hang of it", she said while Kushina nodded with a giddy look on her face.

"Oh wow...I have the Sharingan...now I'm gonna kick more butt", said Kushina as she clenched her fist in anticipation while Ayumi nodded with her. True, Kushina was already a kage level kunoichi of S-rank in bingo books of Kumo, and now with Sharingan...she was truly a force to be reckoned with. Hell, now she could say that Kushina could easily fight Minato toe to toe if he was alive. But when her Sharingan would mature fully, she would probably surpass all the four hokages of Konoha.

"But I have one question...why didn't it activate if it was already in my genes along with the Uzumaki's longetivity and healing factor?", said Kushina.

"Hai...I have thought about it...it would seem that my presence or the seal was preventing the Sharingan to activate, or more like that Sharingan isn't strong enough to overcome my presence. So the moment the seal was broken, I think the Uzumaki longetivity, your healing factor, your special chakra combined with the activation of Sharingan were the only things that kept you alive or prevented you from going into a coma. The same can be said here for Naruto-kun, he also could've activated the Sharingan but again I think that my presence or the seal blocked it", said Ayumi while Kushina nodded with her, a bit sad that Naruto couldn't activate it seeing as it may have had helped him in his childhood.

But she quickly shook her head of those thoughts, no...that Fugaku-teme probably would've taken advantage of her son or more like killed him for inheriting their 'sacred' doujutsu, which only an Uchiha should possess.

"But it seems that the almighty Rinnegan was powerful enough to resist the seal's effects and hence was activated when it's conditions were met. But since his DNA has changed completely...it means that Naru-kun has lost his chance to activate the Sharingan forever", said Kushina seriously while Ayumi nodded with her.

"Nah...I'm pretty happy with the current one", Kushina turned her head to see Naruto getting up while she blinked at how fast he woke up.

"Oh...you're awake already?", said Ayumi with a teasing grin while he ignored her obvious question, a small blush on his face as remembered the stunt both of them pulled a few minutes ago.

"But Kaa-san...I have one question...how were you able to use youki when Ayumi-chan is no longer sealed in you to supply her chakra", he said as he waited curiously for her to answer.

"Oh that. Well recently in my timeline, I had created a special storage seal on my forehead and connected it to my seal holding down Ayumi. So bit by bit, it automatically stored youki. I had created that seal for a rainy day and could use the stored youki instantly if I had to. Currently...I have reserves of about two tails worth of chakra stored in it", she said with a proud smile while Naruto's jaw dropped on the grass.

"Awesome! Kaa-san...th-that's amazing...now you have to teach me fuinjutsu'ttebayo", said with stars shining in his eyes while Kushina smiled at his excitement.

"And what's more, do you know that the Mitonic Regeneration Seal on that Tsunade lady was the work of your Kaa-san", said Ayumi non-chalantly while Naruto's face turned into that of confusion.

"Do you mean Tsunade of the Slug Sanin?", he said while Ayumi nodded with him.

"Kaa-san...you knew her?", he asked while Kushina nodded at him. He was surprised that his mother personally knew a Sanin, but considering that she herself was a big entity in Konoha, it shouldn't be a big deal to her. Meanwhile Kushina restrained herself from saying that Tsunade was his godmother. After going through his memories, she was furious & angry at the same time that Tsunade & Jiraiya weren't there for him. She could understand that the pervert may have had his spy network to maintain, but she couldn't understand anything in Tsunade's case. She herself was confused about this situation, so she opted to stay quiet for now and tell Naruto about them later. She herself had to talk to Tsunade & Jiraiya and find out.

"But that does mean that someday the stored youki will run out", said Ayumi knowingly while Kushina nodded with a pout.

"Yeah...that's what's been bugging me. Some of my best attacks are used in conjunction with youki and it would be a setback to my fighting style", said Kushina while Naruto sadly looked at the grass.

"Hehe...but recently I came up with something which fortunately, fits your situation perfectly", said Ayumi with a smirk while Kushina & Naruto jerked their heads towards the red haired, Kushina twin'ed demoness.

"Does it by any chance relate to that red curse mark which you modified?", said Kushina having seen Naruto's memories while Ayumi nodded with a grin.

"Yeah...I'm curious too as to what did you do exactly to make it turn red", he said in confusion.

"I tweaked the curse mark a bit. Seeing that I had went through the memories of Mito-chan & Kushi-chan, you can say that I had to study fuinjutsu twice and that I myself am a seal master", she said making Naruto's eyes widen while Kushina solemnly nodded with her, signalling her to continue.

"So I completely destroyed Orochimaru's influence from the curse mark, and tweaked it a bit. Now it stores youki instead of that purple chakra creating a whole new seal. So Naruto-kun now is the original holder of this seal just like some other person, who must be the one responsible for creation of curse mark that Orochimaru invented", said Ayumi making Kushina smile with her while completely sweeping Naruto off his feet with the awesomeness that was fuinjutsu.

'_Oh man...now I HAVE to learn this shit, definitely!'_, he thought with determination.

"Further, if Naruto-kun transfers this seal to someone else, they would get the benefits but in a positive way unlike Orochimaru's version of curse seal. The one to whom the seal is transferred, can use youki reserves stored up in Naruto-kun's curse seal. The other benefits are that it opens a telepathic link between Naruto-kun & the user in an area of radius of about 2 miles. They can also feel each other's life force & position as to where they are currently", she said with her nose held high in the air while Naruto was practically glowing with excitement at the prospect of learning such supreme art while Kushina was just smiling gratefully at Ayumi, not that much surprised as she knew about the infinite scope in fuinjutsu.

"Ayumi-chan that is so awesome!", said Naruto with a grin while Ayumi blushed at the compliment. Suddenly, Naruto's grin faded as he blinked when he got the memories of the shadow clone he had sent to fetch ramen, before he blushed as he got its memories back.

"Kaa-san...let's go back...my clone has returned", he said while Kushina nodded with him.

"Aww...you're leaving already", said Ayumi with a pout while Kushina just hugged her.

"Don't worry baka...I will visit you from time to time", said Kushina as she patted her sister-like figure's back.

"Yeah Ayumi-chan...you still have me", he said with a smile before he kissed her cheek making Ayumi blush heavily before both Naruto & Kushina shimmered out of existence in the forest.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's General Hospital:Special Ward for one Emo who Got Fucked Up in the Chunin Exams<strong>

* * *

><p>In the corridors, outside the special ward for the last Uchiha, we see two Anbu standing outside, bored out of their wits.<p>

"I can't believe we were asked to guard this pathetic little shit Uchiha", said the falcon masked Anbu while the other just grunted.

"What can we do? We have to follow orders after all, besides the prick inside deserves every ounce of ass kicking he got from the Uzumaki kid", he said while the other nodded with him. True, the Anbu in Konoha and the Jounin in general hated the last Uchiha for his superiority complex and all. The only reason they showed respect towards him in public, was so that they could escape the clutches of council. Apparently, most of the elite force agreed that the Sandaime Hokage had allowed too much freedom to the council, so much so that they usually pull the strings without the Hokage's orders.

But this time, much to the satisfaction of almost the entire shinobi force of Konoha, the council couldn't do shit this time. The shinobi had heard that Uchiha Sasuke was not chosen for the finals in the Chunin exams, mainly because of the presence of Raikage & Mizukage as well. But they couldn't wait to see his face when the Uchiha learns of it.

Inside the room, you see a heavily bandaged form of one Uchiha Sasuke, with almost all of his body covered in bandages. His one leg handing limply by the hanging white wrappings as he laid motionless on the bed. All sorts of equipments were surrounding his bed while the IV was attached to his arm, the heart monitor beeped continuously indicating that he was still alive.

The ceiling of the room, suddenly twisted as if something/someone made of concrete was protruding out of it. Morphing itself into shape, it showed the pale face of the snake Sanin.

"Kukukuku...it's time Sasuke-kun", said Orochimaru with a sinister smile as he landed on the floor. Outside, the two Anbu guards suddenly barged in when they felt the sound of heart monitor diminish. Their eyes widened when they saw the empty bed.

"Hurry up, we must inform Hokage-sama about this!", the falcon masked shouted to the other who immediately vanished into a blur.

'_Shit! How could this happen? This ward was completely surrounded by a barrier personally setup by Hokage-sama. It seems someone was capable enough to break his barrier'_, thought the falcon masked Anbu. Turning on his microphone,

"ALL UNITS! UCHIHA SASUKE HAS GONE MISSING! I REPEAT UCHIHA SASUKE HAS GONE MISSING! ENQUIRE ANY POSSIBLE SUSPECT YOU FIND AND SOMEONE INFORM KAKASHI-SEMPAI ABOUT THIS!", he shouted followed by shouts of 'ROGER'.

* * *

><p><strong>So did you like it? And sorry for the late update, I was gone out of town. So as usual, review and if you have any questions, then don't hesitate to ask. So until next time, Ja Ne!<strong>

**N6023**


	15. I Will Always Love You

**Hey guys! Sorry for the late update, am really sorry but I've been real busy lately. And thanks to everyone who have reviewed this fic up until now, and now this fic enters the league of 1K+ reviews (I'm so excited!). So without anything else to say, on with the chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-15-I Will Always Love You<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>Shit! How could this happen? This ward was completely surrounded by a barrier personally setup by Hokage-sama. It seems someone was capable enough to break his barrier'<em>, thought the falcon masked Anbu. Turning on his microphone,

"ALL UNITS! UCHIHA SASUKE HAS GONE MISSING! I REPEAT UCHIHA SASUKE HAS GONE MISSING! ENQUIRE ANY POSSIBLE SUSPECT YOU FIND AND SOMEONE INFORM KAKASHI-SEMPAI ABOUT THIS!", he shouted followed by shouts of 'ROGER'.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's Forest-One Mile North of Hokage's Monument-Hideout<strong>

* * *

><p>"Oh wow! I was really starving for ramen. Thanks Naru-kun!", beamed Kushina as she gazed at the steaming bowls of ramen like a predator while Naruto chuckled at her ramen obsessed enthusiasm as he shook his head.<p>

"But Kaa-san, what about...", he trailed off when he found Kushina wolfing down ramen as he blinked, "Never mind I guess", he muttered before sitting beside her and too began wolfing down the steaming bowls, with their eating manners being strikingly similar. The only sounds except the pitter patter of rain drops were their slurping sounds as they only concentrated on their food, like it was a holy untouched thing and deserved their full attention.

Both looked at each other, their bowls finished when only one filled bowl was left among the ten to twelve empty ones, the noodles hanging limply by their mouth sides as they stared at each other with a challenging look in their eyes, like a Mexican stand-off.

"Stand down Kaa-san...that one's mine", said Naruto as he glared at Kushina while she glared back.

"We'll see Naru-kun", she said with a smirk before doing a ram sign making Naruto stiffen for whatever she was planning on doing.

"**Fuin!** (Seal)", she exclaimed with a grin while Naruto's eyes widened when he felt his arms and legs stick to each other like they were being tied to handcuffs. He tried to open them but it was like they were tied by an external force. His jaw dropped when he saw a seal tags on his under forearms and under thighs.

"When did you...", he said with a gaping expression while Kushina grinned at him.

"When I was eating", she said with a victorious smirk making Naruto's eyes twitch.

"But placing them in at such positions...it's impossible that I couldn't even notice", he said while her grin widened.

"I'm not a kage level kunoichi for nothing Naru-kun", she said making Naruto sigh in defeat as she agonisingly took the last bowl in her soft & slender hands and started eating them slowly making his eyes twitch in irritation. He averted his gaze so as to not see the torturous display but it would seem that Kushina had different ideas.

"Mmm...this is good. Did you know that the last bowl has it's own special taste Naru-kun?", said Kushina in a teasing tone with an innocent smile.

"WILL YOU JUST EAT IT ALREADY?", he shouted as she looked at him innocently.

"Hmm...you said something?", she said making a vein pop on his forehead.

"That...seems familiar", he muttered as she resumed her torturous eating. He could withstand those fun hours in dungeons with Ibiki, but this was the most torturous torture, now he understood Chouji's feelings whenever he ate that last barbeque piece in front of him.

Suddenly, he noticed the way she was eating. His eyes zoomed in, as he watched the delectable noodles slip from the metallic spoon into those soft pink lips as she ate them slowly.

'_Wow...shit...I'm becoming a pervert aren't I? '_, he thought as he closed his eyes, a dark blush on his face which Kushina seemed to notice as she smirked at him. She didn't know why, but she enjoyed flirting with him, and annoying him along the way of course.

'_Ah...I better keep my eyes closed...I cannot watch as the last of my Ramen-chan gets devoured by those soft...Oh hell no! What the fuck is wrong with me?'_, he thought as he kept his eyes closed, an annoyed expression on his face.

His eyes snapped open, when he felt the warm noodles grazing his lips. His oceanic blue eyes widened when he saw Kushina sitting beside him, the bowl in on one hand and she poked his lips with the ramen filled spoon.

"Open up Naru-kun", she said with a sweet smile almost making Naruto faint from her cuteness, before moisture gathered in his eyes. He had never thought of this moment, his mother feeding him Ramen with those love filled eyes, it was like a dream come true.

"Kaa-san...you're giving me your ramen?", he said with a lump in his throat, a confused expression on his face while Kushina nodded at him with a smile. He knew the gravity of the situation here, he himself knew how hard it was for him & as well as his mother to share even one spoon of ramen, as Ayumi told him. But here, she was giving him her whole freaking bowl, and a last one at that.

"But...why? You never shared it with anyone...much less give it", he said while she giggled at his perplexed expression.

"Baka...you're all I want...there's nothing important to me in this world than you and I would be willing to sacrifice anything for you", she said before a cute pout replaced her smile.

"Although...giving the whole bowl to you seems to be pushing it...but that's fine as long as it is you", she said with a smile making him almost burst in tears. This situation may look comical to many others, but in their language, they understood that if she was willing to give him her ramen, he was really something special to her that no one could hope to take place in her eyes.

"I...thank you Kaa-san...thank you", he said as he took the warm spoon in his mouth with quivering lips while Kushina started feeding him with abundant love in her eyes, those warm violet love filled eyes which were only reserved for him, those eyes which could make enemies faint with just their ferocious gaze, it really made him all warm & fuzzy inside to know that he was that much special to her.

"Besides...", she started in between her feeding, " I always wanted to feed my Naru-kun", she said as she wiped the noodles off the side of his mouth, making him blush at the contact before she put the empty bowl on the table.

"Kai!", she exclaimed before she was glomped by Naruto who hugged her tightly to him, making her blink before she smiled at him.

"I love you so much Kaa-san", he said with a sniff making Kushina blush, as she could feel the 'rise' of double meaning behind those words before she rubbed his back softly making him want to sleep there right then.

"I...love you too Naru-kun", she said in a whisper when she felt Naruto's body loosen against herself.

'_Hmm...why do these three words seem too suspicious to be shared between mother & son?'_, said Ayumi in a thinking pose with a devilish smirk, expecting an answer from the blonde object of her affection. She blinked when she got nothing before smiling.

"_Hehe...sweet dreams Naruto-kun"_

Kushina blinked when she heard sounds of light snoring as she now noticed that the rain had stopped, pulling herself just a little bit she was greeted to the sight of her ex-son sleeping with a peaceful expression on his face. Moisture gathered in her eyes when she saw his face, a face which had endured so much and could still be able to give birth to such serene expression. A lone tear streamed down her tear-stained cheeks as she firmly but lightly hugged Naruto to her, so as to not wake him up.

"I...would make it upto you Naru-kun...for every punch, every kick, every stab, every glare...for everything", she said between her chocked silent sobs as she shifted herself back on the sofa after some moments and slowly put his head on her lap. Wiping her wet eyes, she caressed his blonde locks of spiky but soft & silky hair lovingly. For now, she was just content to lose herself in that beautiful & cute expression on his face. Leaning down, she put aside his blonde bangs before kissing him on the forehead affectionately as she caressed his whisker marks. She giggled when he stirred in his sleep while mumbling.

"Feels...good", he mumbled with a small smile making Kushina giggle sweetly at him.

"Oh...that feels good, huh Naru-kun?", she whispered playfully in his ears as she continued to rub his whisker marks softly. Those whisker marks, which distinguished his handsome appearance from every men, were one of the things along his blue eyes & blonde hair she loved. Actually she could say that she was fond of every fibre of his being. Her eyes slowly travelled to down his face, and settled on the lips making pink tint dust her cheeks. Seeing his slightly parted lips she slowly leaned down with only one thought.

'_I wonder how those would feel...'_, being only inches away from his lips, her nose touching his nose as his hot breath tickled her face, she started to close the gap ever so slowly. The gap decreasing...decreasing...decreasing...almost there...just a little more...

Her nose suddenly scrunched as her eyes became half lidded, "Aa...aa...", she suddenly jerked her head back and turned sideways.

"AACHOO!"... god bless you.

'_Damn! First that thunder and now this cursed cold...'_, she stopped her train of thoughts before blushing darkly at the stunt she was going to pull.

'_I have to control myself...besides I don't know think Naru-kun that thinks of me as a woman...what if he hates & disgusts me if he comes to know of this...no...I can't do this...I have to be his mother and give everything he wants. But the most thing he wants...is love...what am I going to do...these feelings are so conflicted damn it!'_, she thought while holding her head in irritation.

Seeing her still somewhat wet condition, she slowly put Naruto's head on a pillow by her side before slipping from under him. Slipping herself out of the now ragged gown, her now nude form approached the bath with a grace which only a kunoichi like her possessed. Her body was like that of hand made by Kami herself, all the curves were in the right place creating an hour glass figure, her nice perfect round & firm ass swayed along her each step, her supple, firm & milk creamy D-cup tits jiggled along with her movements while her pink nipples were hardened due to the coldness of the wet gown. She cupped her breasts with a satisfied smirk on her face.

'_Hehe...all hail the Uzumaki bloodline...these breasts wouldn't become saggy like Tsunade-sama's and hence I don't need any of those uncomfortable bra...hmm...why do I have this sudden urge that Naru-kun accidently wakes up & sees me like this'_, her thoughts swaying in general from one topic to another as she closed the door.

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: Six Hours Later: Same Location<strong>

* * *

><p>"Naru-kun...wake up sleepyhead", whispered a soft angelic voice in his hears as Naruto stirred in his sleep.<p>

"Yeah...more Ramen...Kaa-san", he mumbled making Kushina giggle as she slowly rubbed his whisker marks lovingly and placed a kiss on his cheek.

'_Yo Naruto-kun! Wake up baka! Kushi-sama wants you in her presence'_, said Ayumi in a sarcastic tone as she sent small chakra pulses through his body effectively making him wake up, but groggily.

"What's wrong Ayumi-chan...I told you not to _'yawn'_ disturb me when I'm asleep", he said aloud with a sleepy & a silly expression on his face, as he rubbed his head while looking around himself when his eyes fell on Kushina, before they widened taking in her form. Her face was now practically glowing white after cleansing herself off the dirt & tear stains, her unblemished soft skin was now milk creamy, her long red hair now neatly clipped at her forehead making her an angel in his eyes. She was wearing that same outfit whose torso he had seen in the wardrobe, red trimmings along the shoulder, forearms & rib region made it look exotic and the flame drenched Uzumaki sign just reached the peak in his eyes, the tightness of her torso making her look all that more appealing. There was a black zipper along her chest, which was opened showing a bit of her cleavage making him blush, there was a thin utility dark blue belt containing cylindrical pockets, preferably containing storage scrolls. Looking down, he blushed when he noticed the black kunoichi pants tightly hugging her shapely legs. On the pants, there were typical kunai & shuriken holsters. All in all, it gave her a look of bad ass kunoichi in general and a goddess & someone to admire, for him.

"Kaa-san...you look awesome...where did you get this?", he asked with admiration in his eyes for the outfit as well as for the one wearing it while Kushina's cheeks turned a light pink upon his compliment as she composed herself.

"Hehe...I ordered a self customised outfit from a friend of mine who runs a secret shop down the Red Light district", she said with a light smile while scratching her cheek lightly.

"Clothing store in the Red Light district?", he tilted his head in confusion while Kushina smirked.

"Yeah...and from your memories I presume that you are quite well treated in the most resented district", she said while he nodded sadly.

"Yeah...those guys are the only ones who would care for me or treat me right. But I've never seen any shinobi clothing store there", he said while she sighed.

"It's called secret for a reason", she said while he grinned sheepishly making her shake her head at him.

"So...Kaa-san...would you mind if I could get that ultra cool flame swirling sign on my trench coat", he said with anticipation while she nodded with a smile like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Awesome! I'm gonna look so cool in that...", he said with a grin while Kushina smiled at him.

'_Absolutely dead serious & a genius when the situation calls for it, and a goofy funny guy when he's just being himself...you're really something Naru-kun...I'm proud of you...you just keep impressing me'_, she thought with a fond smile as she watched him look around the spacious wooden room.

"Kaa-san...what about that curse mark...do you um...want it?", he asked meekly, not sure if she would want something as vile as curse mark. She jerked her head, like she realised it just now.

"Oh yeah...I totally forgot...ofcourse ofcourse!", she said with an eager expression while Naruto beamed at her with happiness, he wanted to help her and was not sure if she would accept being a part of something that Orochimaru once created.

"But...ahm...I...have to bite you", he said with a blush while Kushina's face turned tomato red as she remembered what Ayumi had said.

"Oh...o-okay", she stuttered trying to get a hold of her blush, something she was sure that only Naruto was capable of doing now. Slipping down her zipper a bit, she revealed more of her unblemished milk creamy skin making Naruto's blush darken as now he also could see more of her cleavage. Hesitantly approaching her, he could also sense Kushina's uneasiness as she was just standing there with her hands down her sides, a dark blush on her face as she bit her lower lip.

Standing just in front of her, he closed his eyes while taking a deep breath. It was a first time for him, he didn't know what would happen & was completely placing his trust in Ayumi, which almost made the queen bijuu jump in joy that he had so much faith in her.

"_Okay...so what now Ayumi-chan?"_, he asked inwardly.

"_You need to enter youki cloak mode to make this work"_, she said as Naruto nodded.

"Kaa-san, the barrier around this compound...is it activated right now? To give you my curse mark, I need to use Ayumi's chakra and I don't want anyone in the village to sense it", he said while Kushina nodded, the cute blush still on her face as Naruto started using the youki until there was a red chakra cloak surrounding him. Kushina saw as his features became more ferocious just like her's became whenever she used youki, his hair became spikier while his nails & canines grew along with his eyes turning red with a black slit and his whiskers getting deep, gusts of wind picking around him because of the chakra force.

"**This will hurt a bit Kaa-san"**, he said while Kushina nodded with a smile on her face, the darkening blush still on her face as she took in his fiery features making him all the more appealing. Leaning towards her neck, his hot breath tickling her skin as he grabbed a hold of her shoulders, making sure to lessen the youki around his hands as much as he could to lessen it's harmful effects but Kushina remained unaffected by such small amount seeing as she was used to it.

Slowing leaning further, his elongated canines pierced her creamy skin drawing blood while Kushina remain unaffected by the pain seeing as she was a kage level kunoichi with high tolerance for pain, whereas Naruto channelled youki through his canines and into her skin. But he was surprised when an involuntary moan escaped Kushina's lips, who tilted her head more showing more skin as if appreciating his action. She was feeling pain too, but somehow the action of him biting her seemed to be more pleasurable than the pain.

'_I thought the process was supposed to be painful'_, he thought as he just finished channelling enough youki before he leaned back while Kushina almost whimpered from the lack of contact. Looking over, he could see the formation of a red swirling Uzumaki sign on her side-back neck, a flustered expression on her face.

"Kaa-san? Are you alright?", he said with a concerned expression while Kushina bit her lower lip, her eyes closed as she took deep breaths to calm herself.

'_I guess that pervert of a bijuu didn't tell Naru-kun about the pleasure part...I should have known'_, thought the fiery kunoichi as she slowly nodded at him.

"Ayumi-chan says that so far I have about one tail worth of chakra reserved in the curse seal, so you should be able to access it too. Just tap your curse swirling mark with your chakra laced index & middle finger and say 'kai'...it should slowly leak youki in your coils so as to not damage your chakra coils due to instant injection. If you want to stop the flow, just do the same and say 'fuin'", he said as Kushina nodded with a thoughtful expression on her face before she proceeded to do what he said.

"**Kai"**, she whispered before she felt the familiar youki being slowly injected into her coils, it was like she was gradually becoming strong, like her already large chakra levels were growing at a steady rate. Seeing that it was working perfectly fine, she sealed it back to as to preserve youki.

"Wow...amazing it worked!", said Naruto with an expression of awe while Ayumi smiled to herself with pride whereas Kushina just smiled at Naruto's expression, it seemed like fuinjutsu never ceased to amaze his curious mind. To her, it wasn't that much seeing that she could break down or create seals so complex which would make seal masters like Jiraiya whimper.

"_Ayumi-chan...you're so awesome. Hey! Say, will you teach me fuinjutsu...I know Kaa-san promised that she would teach me but she wouldn't always be there to monitor me but you are always here..."_, he said inwardly with a hopeful tone while Ayumi blushed at the compliment.

"_O-Of course Naruto-kun..."_, she said with a flustered expression while Naruto grinned inwardly at her.

'_Hehe...you're wrong Naruto-kun...as far as I know, Kushina isn't going to leave you as long as she lives'_, thought Ayumi with a smile, a small blush still on her cheeks.

"_Thanks Ayumi-chan...you're the best...I really like you dattebayo!"_, he said inwardly making Ayumi stop frozen at whatever she was doing, a cute blush on her face, her eyes widened as she blinked, processing the exact words he had said to her.

'_He likes me?'_, she thought, repeating those words before a full blown glowing smile started to creep on her face as she jumped with joy, her nine tails swishing madly behind her in excitement.

"_Do you hear it kitsune-chan? He likes me...I'm so happy!_", she said to a baby fox, who was yipping at her in delight, as if happy for her while she cuddled it with a large smile on her face, like a girl cuddling with her teddy bear in happiness. Both of them were sitting on the green flush grass of the clearing in the beautiful forest with small foxes surrounding her and playing with each other, making her herself hard to believe that a sewer existed instead of this heaven.

"Naru-kun...the sun is setting down and it's almost dark...it's time to pay that monkey a visit", she said with an annoyed expression on her face, Hiruzen was like a father figure to her but the way he handled her son's childhood, he lost all the respect that the poor guy had strained his back to earn.

"Monkey?", trailed Naruto in confusion before realisation dawned on him, "Wait! You don't mean ji...", he said almost slipping and forgetting that he still hadn't forgiven Hiruzen, while Kushina nodded at him with a serious expression on her face which told him straight out that she was not going to accept 'no' as the answer. Sighing in defeat, he nodded while Kushina's serious expression was instantly replaced by a bright smile before she placed a kiss on his cheek.

"That's my Naru-kun...now let's go and kick some ass", she said with a grin while Naruto nodded with an adorable blush which made Kushina want to glomp him right there.

Wearing his black shinobi sandals he proceeded to the door followed by Kushina when he spotted something at the corner of his eye.

"Kaa-san...what are those strange kunai hanging by the wooden shelf", he said while pointing at the tri-pronged kunai making Kushina sigh.

"Those kunai are the used for the teleportation technique: **Hiraishin no Jutsu** (Flying Thunder God Technique) you're father used which made him famous across the elemental nations", she said before her eyes widened when she noticed her slip up, while Naruto's eyes widened too.

"My father? You haven't yet told me who my father was...Kaa-san, c'mon tell me!", he said with an ecstatic expression, a bright light shining in those blue orbs. She was really hoping to stall this question but it would seem she had no choice.

"Your father Naru-kun...it was the Yondaime Hokage", she said with closed eyes while whispering the last part through gritted teeth, as if containing her anger at the mention of Minato, who she now couldn't help but resent him. Meanwhile, the whole world around Naruto froze as he came to know about his father, someone who sealed Ayumi inside his own son, a stunned silence following Kushina's hate laced whisper. He didn't know if he should be happy or angry at his father. On one side he was ecstatic that he was the son of the infamous yondaime, but on the other hand he was a bit angry at him. Although he couldn't help but hold a grudge against the guy for the most part of his life for condemning his existence to hell, but now...

"Kaa-san...did he love me?", he said with his bangs shadowing his face while Kushina couldn't keep the hatred from touching her answer.

"It doesn't matter now seeing as he practically destroyed your childhood", she spoke with venom with clenched fists, whereas Naruto again asked.

"Did...he love me?", he said while she just refused out flatly.

"No", she said not meeting his gaze after he had lifted his head and was currently piercing her eyes.

"You're lying...", he said while she narrowed her eyes.

"Why would I lie to you? I told you he didn't love you...he only cared about being a hero and nothing else", she said, angry that he was pushing such a subject.

"You're again lying...you're letting your hatred control you...he loved me...I refuse to believe that he didn't...besides why would he sacrifice his life then if he was a man like that...if he was a father who couldn't love his son, then he couldn't have possibly been a leader who loved this village enough to sacrifice himself. Instead he would've run the moment Ayumi escaped the seal to save his ass which only someone as sick as Orochimaru could do...not the yondaime", he said with clearity in his voice while Kushina remained silent, a surprised expression on her face.

"I agree that maybe his methods of handling things were wrong, but his intentions were good. Or it could be that maybe he was seeing something that we all aren't able to see right now", he said with a serious tone while Kushina couldn't help but let a small smile grace her lips at his maturity, and that how good he turned out, it was nothing short of a miracle.

"You've really matured Naru-kun...haven't you? But still, I can't help but hate him. I'm a mother...you can't understand my feelings Naru-kun...I carried you for nine months...nourished you, loved you & STILL love you with every fibre of my being. But when your baby's life is destroyed on the day he's born...you seem to throw logic out of the window, no matter how insane you may look like to the other. The same way you reacted when I told you to back down earlier today...your logical part was telling you that I was being cautious, even Ayumi too, but your emotions were just too great to understand anything else...the same is the case with me", she said with a saddened expression while Naruto nodded with her, kinda embarrassed to have acted like that earlier, but then the frustrations & emotions were on all high and he couldn't help but burst like that. He looked up when he felt Kushina tightly hug him, her arms around his neck as she rubbed his back head softly, a sigh escaping her lips.

"I don't what I would've done if I had lost you on that night Naru-kun...you are everything to me...you are everything I need in this world...Uchiha Mikoto...you know her right?", she said while Naruto blushed at her words, a warm feeling engulfing his fragile heart before he nodded at her question.

"Her son Uchiha Sasuke... the one who was given everything he desired since he was born, practically living a life of royalty...what if Ayumi was sealed inside of him by Uchiha Fugaku on that night...do you think his life would've been that merry...wouldn't Mikoto be enraged that her son, who could've gotten so much was treated like trash...wouldn't she despise the very soil on which Fugaku walked on, doing something like that to her baby...the same is the case with you...you could've gotten so much. Love, happiness, joy, power...all would've been within your grasp...hehe, of course we wouldn't have let you become a spoiled one...but your life would've been much better. I know that I'm being selfish...but that's what every mother wants for her son. Although I'm no longer your biological mother, but you're much more precious to me...than what son's are possibly to their mothers", she said with a serene expression while Naruto just listened to her, stunned at the implications of her words.

'_And that's how an Uzumaki says 'I have a crush on you' folks'_, inwardly thought Ayumi while rolling her eyes at the awkward species that were the Uzumakis.

'_What does...she mean by that?'_, thought Naruto as he continued to hold her in silence. Meanwhile Kushina slowly blinked, coming to the terms with what had slipped her mouth in the spur of the moment.

'_Shit! I'm an idiot...geez...why can't I be cool for once and not slip up like a klutz'_, thought Kushina with a nervous expression on her face as she hoped that Naruto wouldn't have noticed that last line of a slip up.

"Kaa-san...what do you mean?", he said after leaning back and looking into her deep violet eyes, making her heart beat faster as she avoided his gaze with a pink tint on her cheeks.

"N-Nothing...let's go", she said before releasing him from the hug and began pushing him towards the door.

"O-Oi...you don't need to push", he said with an annoyed expression while Kushina just kept pushing him until they were outside, wanting to escape the embarrassing situation.

"Geez! Kaa-san...what's wrong?", he said while Kushina just kept ignoring him and released the barrier surrounding the hideout compound.

'_Was it something I said Ayumi-chan?'_, he asked inwardly while Ayumi face palmed herself, a groan escaping her lips.

'_You're an idiot'_, she said out flatly while Naruto sweatdropped before zooming himself out to see Kushina looking at him with a strange expression on her face.

'_Fine I guess...geez...females sure are strange...doesn't matter if they are human or demon'_, he thought before deciding to change the subject. He knew that she was uncomfortable with what she said, he was too. He couldn't fully understand what she meant by that, but he sure was eager to find it.

'_Could it be that she too is attracted to me?'_, he thought as he could strangely feel himself liven up at the possibility.

'_What's wrong with me? I...I can't think of him like that...he's my son, my baby...but I love him very much...these feelings...what if he hates because of it? I don't think I can live with that'_, Kushina thought with a down expression before she heard Naruto's bright voice.

"Kaa-san! Tell me, can I learn that flying thunder technique which dad used?", he said with enthusiasm while Kushina sighed in relief, relieved that he wasn't thinking about her slip up.

'_Naru-kun...you always know how to make me smile, don't you?'_, she thought as a radiant smile chirped on her face.

"Of course! But the fact is that...nobody except your father knew how to use that technique", she said while still strangely smiling, even at what was supposed to be the gloomy part making Naruto sweatdrop.

"What the hell's so funny about it then?", he asked with an irritated face while Kushina giggled at his face.

"Nothing...I'm just happy to have you...that's all", she said with a grin while Naruto blushed, taken aback by her words before she laughed merrily at his expense making him more irritated.

"You like to do that, don't you?", he said while pointing an accusing finger at her whereas she just started laughing harder while holding her stomach.

"You should...hehe...see...hehe...your face", she said while her melodic laughter echoed throughout the dark forest whereas Naruto had a small smile on his face.

'_Doesn't matter how idiotic l look...the fact that I can make you smile is enough for me'_, he thought while faking a face of irritation.

"Are you done already? We have to go now...remember?", he said with an irritated face, while inwardly he was smiling at her.

"Oh..hehe...right. Sorry Naru-kun", she said while wiping the tears of laughter from her eyes as Naruto stood beside her and started walking in the direction of the village before he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking behind, he saw a mischievous glint in her bright violet orbs, a cunning smile on her face.

"But Naru-kun...I'm still weak remember from giving you birth a couple of hours ago, remember? My body's still not upto it's full strength...would you mind carrying me?", she said with a cute expression & puppy dog eyes, making Naruto groan as he just couldn't resist it. The way she asked him, the sight looked so erotic that he had to struggle to control his raging hormones, he was in that stage after all and because of the Rinnegan & a particular perverted someone, it seemed to amplify his urges.

"F-Fine", he huffed with a fake scowl as he bent down, his back facing her while Kushina smiled brightly at her devious prank. There was a purpose behind this, she needed to know if Naruto seemed to think of her the same way she was feeling, and the blush on his face despite his scowl couldn't have said any better.

She didn't know why she was having these urges to flirt with him, but it sure was fun and she was enjoying every moment of it. Incest be damned, the only thing that mattered to her was that that she make him happy and loved him as much as she could, even if some limits & boundaries are broken along the way.

Jumping like a little schoolgirl, she landed on his back making him grunt from the sudden pressure as he lifted himself, a dark blush on his face as Kushina's breasts were pressed tightly against his back while he got hold of her lean thighs which could make any man die from nose bleed just from the feel of them.

"What's wrong Naru-kun? You're face is up all red, do you have a fever? Here let me check", said Kushina oh-so-innocently as she sensually traced her fingers over his forehead making him weak in the knees, while Naruto's eyebrows twitched in what seemed to be realisation.

'_Why does it seem that she's doing this intentionally? And is she mimicking me?'_, he thought but couldn't help the butterflies that were dancing in his stomach from her closeness. Meanwhile Ayumi was laughing heartily at the scene.

'_Hehe...I can't believe it! She's acting the same way Naruto-kun used to act in front of that Hinata girl...Kushi-chan, you're really something'_, thought Ayumi as she watched the scene going on with a fond smile on her face, as if burning these happy memories deep in her mind for she knew the dark future that was waiting for both of them.

"I-I'm fine dammit! Just hold on, we're leaving!", he said after shaking his head of his blush & get a hold of himself while Kushina just giggled at him before Naruto dashed in the direction of the village.

"Naru-kun...I'm impressed...for a thirteen year old, your speed & agility far exceeds even rare prodigies like Itachi", she said while tightly clinging to his back, a smile on her face while Naruto blushed at the compliment. He was still not used to frequent compliments that Kushina made about him, but his heart swelled every time with joy. She appreciated everything he did, and didn't hesitate to show him. Every time, he couldn't stop the blush of embarrassment from reaching his face. In these past few days, he was appreciated far more as compared to his life. So naturally, it was still new for him, but hey, he wasn't complaining or anything. He smiled at the feeling of her body pressed against his back, it was like she made him warm & full.

"But don't let it get to your head. You do know that Akatsuki is behind you, right? Even with your above expectation skills, it wouldn't take more than ten seconds flat for them to take you out even with your Rinnegan", she said with a serious tone while clutching him tightly, in a warm way while Naruto nodded with a serious expression, a determined glint in his eyes.

"I know Kaa-san...but I will get stronger...I will train harder than ever before. With you to teach me, I know I can take anyone on in the world", he said with determination shining in his eyes.

"Hehe...I will teach you everything I can Naru-kun, that I promise!", she said with a determined smile as she rested her head on his back, a happy sigh escaping her lips. Never had she thought that she would be attracted to her own son, but it seemed that fate had other ideas. Being sent thirteen years in the future, she was still as young as ever and was in her prime so there wasn't that much of an age gap between Naruto & her.

'_I wouldn't lose you to those Akatsuki idiots Naru-kun, that I promise. With the addition of Sharingan to my arsenal, I know that I can easily defeat S-rank shinobi but it seems that this organisation is something else. I need to train Naruto as hard as I can, and I too have to master Sharingan'_, thought Kushina as her eyes flashed red with one black tomoe while she closed her eyes in contempt, a peaceful smile on her face when she heard Naruto whisper,

"Arigatou Kaa-san"

Along the way after some moments, a comfortable silence except the sound of footsteps ensued between them, while Naruto's thoughts currently drifted to the memories he got from his clone.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback-Around Six Hours Ago<strong>

* * *

><p>The shadow clone was currently going in the direction of Ichiraku's ramen, having opted to take the rooftop route to avoid confrontation with any crazy villager or one of his friends, he was in no mood to meet anyone right now. Strangely, it seemed that the rain was only pouring down the deep forests whereas Konoha seemed to remain unaffected. Just as he was about to jump to another roof, he stopped when he heard someone shout his name. Cursing his luck, he slowly turned his head in the direction from where the voice came before a smile formed on his face.<p>

"Kurenai-chan!", he exclaimed happily as the genjutsu mistress landed just in front of him with a cold expression making him tilt his head in confusion.

"Hey...what's with t-", he stopped when he saw her doing short set of handseals before she whispered something. Looking around, he noticed that nothing had happened before he felt himself being hugged tightly to his surprise.

"Naruto-kun! How are you? I visited your room an hour ago but you weren't there, so I started searching for you", she said with a bright smile on her face as Naruto's face turned blue from the pressure she was applying in the hug.

"Kure..nai-chan...can't...breathe", he choked as Kurenai immediately released him, a sheepish expression on her face before she muttered 'sorry'. Looking at her in confusion, he asked.

"What was that all about? One second you're acting like a Hyuga & another..you're like a completely different person...is it about that idiotic fact about keeping your image of that of an ice queen and all that", Kurenai huffed at his question.

"Of course, I can't let anyone see me acting like this you baka...I have an image to retain after all", she said with crossing her arms in front of her chest, accentuating her impressive bust making Naruto blush before he decided to keep his eyes glued to her face, and avoid the wrath of an ice queen.

"I understand that, and I think you applied a genjutsu on us so that nobody sees us correct? Or more importantly...see you smile, right?", he said seriously while Kurenai's eyes widened at his words before her eyes turned to that of confusion.

"What do you mean?", she said while he sighed.

"Why do you ice queens act like that? Why be cold to everyone? Even to your colleagues? There are many civilians & shinobi who don't deserve your cold expressions? And besides, why change yourself just for some pathetic perverts?", he said with a calm expression while Kurenai eyes yet again widened as she contemplated his words, no words or retort escaping her lips.

"According to me...you four ladies should just be yourself. I too was a fool to hide behind a mask back then, but now I understand that keeping your emotions bottled up will only worsen your condition. Don't think that I'm lecturing you Kurenai-chan, but remember that you're very precious to me, someone who helped me when I was desperately in need of a friend. I don't know about the other two, but you & Anko-chan have such a bright personality and still you have to act like that? Do you both have to hide yourself from the world so much that you need to use genjutsu every time? Even when Anko-chan cries on your shoulder?", he said with a pleading look in his eyes while Kurenai's eyes widened at the last sentence.

"You were awake back then?", she asked with a stunned expression.

"Enough to notice you before you applied that genjutsu. But please think about it Kurenai-chan, I want to see your bright smile every time I meet you and not those cold expressions. It really gives me the creeps", said the clone while comically shuddering at the image whereas Kurenai giggled at his expression.

"Thank you Naru-kun...I will think about it", she said with a smile while Naruto nodded with a smile, the cool breeze brushing them as their hair flew in sync with the nature making both of them blush as they watched each other, both of them averting their gazes from each other. Naruto's eyes suddenly widened when he remembered something.

"Kurenai-sensei...what about Hinata-chan?"

* * *

><p><strong>So, did you like it? And anybody who wants to flame for making Kushina hate Minato, well kindly keep it to yourselves. This chapter was put up in a hassle, but still I hope it was good enough for you. So please review and the next chapter should be updated sooner! Ja Ne!<strong>

**N6023**


	16. Flashback

**So here's the quick update you guys wanted and the sixteenth chapter. And it seems many of you guys have problems with the pacing of this fic, so I'll try to improve it with 'try' being the key word since there are many things that are pending before the finals. And also the current harem is final, no other female would be added. And also-**

_**"Bijuu/**Bijuu**"**_**, this indicates that Ayumi or Naruto or anyone are 'talking' inwardly.  
><strong>_**'Bijuu/**Bijuu**'**_**, and this indicates that Ayumi or Naruto or anyone are 'thinking' to themselves. (Note the quotes)**

**So with nothing else to explain, enjoy-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-16-Flashback<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback-Around Six Hours Ago<strong>

* * *

><p>"Enough to notice you before you applied that genjutsu. But please think about it Kurenai-chan, I want to see your bright smile every time I meet you and not those cold expressions. It really gives me the creeps", said the clone while comically shuddering at the image whereas Kurenai giggled at his expression.<p>

"Thank you Naru-kun...I will think about it", she said with a smile while Naruto nodded with a smile, the cool breeze brushing them as their hair flew in sync with the nature making both of them blush as they watched each other, both of them averting their gazes from each other. Naruto's eyes suddenly widened when he remembered something.

"Kurenai-sensei...what about Hinata-chan?", he said in a concerned tone while Kurenai smiled warmly at him for caring for Hinata so much. She had known about Naruto's & Hinata's feelings for each other for a long time, and she had to admit that she was very jealous of her student that Naruto possibly returned her feelings. But once she came to know about the CRA and Naruto having multiple wives, her heart had instantly lightened up. Earlier she had accepted that she had no chance with him, and her heart clenched whenever she saw Naruto talking with Hinata, although that was rare but still it saddened her greatly. But at that time, she knew that Hinata would be good for Naruto but now, seeing that he had to take atleast ten wives, she had this competence urge to prove to herself and others including Naruto that she was more than capable of being his wife, if more so than Hinata.

So with Hinata, she had this awkward relationship, which included a student-teacher one, a sister bond and a thread of competition between them for the one they loved, but that didn't mean that she didn't care for Hinata, it was just complex for her to even explain to others.

"Hellooo...back to Konoha Kurenai-chan", he said while waving his hand in front of a far-away looking face of the genjutsu mistress. Zooming out of her thoughts, she blushed in embarrassment before she remembered the past events concerning Hinata. Naruto watched her as she adopted a thinking pose, her ruby lips slowly curving upward before she burst out laughing. He blinked comically while standing there as she continued to laugh at something.

"_I think she has lost it"_, he said inwardly with a sweat drop.

"_She...sure is strange sometimes"_, said Ayumi with an amused face while Naruto nodded with her.

"Ahm...care to share with me what's so funny Kurenai-chan", he said with a raised eyebrow while Kurenai raised her hand in front of her, palm facing Naruto as if asking him to wait. Tapping his foot patiently, he waited...waited...and waited...and her laughter seemed to be getting louder by the second as tears came out of her closed eyes while she held her stomach.

"I'm running out of my patience Kurenai", he said using her first name, his eyebrows twitching dangerously as her laughing subsided considerably, but she was still snickering to herself.

"Wait...hehehe...AHAHAHA...you should've seen...hehe...Hiashi's face when he saw her new Byakugan...", she said in between her barely restrained snickers while Naruto raised his eyebrows, well this should be interesting. Taking out a photo from out of nowhere, she gave it to Naruto who had one thought running through his mind when he took the photo.

'_This...definitely should be interesting'_, he thought before he look at the photo. His lips slowly curved upwards, his eyebrows shooting upwards before he too burst out laughing comically while Kurenai too joined him.

"Oh man...this is gold...a true gem...w-where did you...get this?", he said in between his bombardous laughter.

"I...hehe...accidently had a camera that time", she said still snickering to herself after controlling herself before she squealed when she found herself being lifted in air.

"You're sooo awesome Kurenai-chan! Do you know the possibilities of the ultimate prank I can pull with this?", said Naruto as he lifted her in air while hugging her, her hands on his shoulders while her soft locks of black hair fell on his face, her melodic giggling making Naruto's heart flutter as he gazed at her glowing white face.

'_I never noticed how beautiful Kurenai-chan is...well I did before, but now she's beautiful more so than ever'_, he thought with a dreamy gaze while Kurenai noticed him staring intently at her, a light blush forming on her beautiful face as she abruptly stopped laughing making Naruto snap out of his daze. He blushed furiously as he realised what he had thought and the intimate position they were in while Kurenai too had a cute blush on her face, her hands tightly holding onto his muscular shoulders like she never wanted to let him go, her warm crimson eyes piercing his oceanic blue eyes making him entranced by her beauty.

'_Snap out of it mothafucka...you've got other things to do'_, came an irritated voice inside his head making his eyes widened before he abruptly put Kurenai on her feet making her 'eep'. If not for the genjutsu, and if anyone would've seen her squeal and 'eep', they probably would've fainted from shock. Yuhi Kurenai NEVER associated herself with these type of girly things, she was a cold professional kunoichi who didn't waste her time in these kind of silly things, that was the kind of image she had created in any common villager's or a shinobi's mind.

"Naruto-kun...is something wrong?", asked Kurenai as she noticed his faraway look but he didn't respond, which she deduced he must be talking to Ayumi.

"_Oi...what the hell! How the hell are you still able to contact me from boss's seal?"_, he said inwardly before he heard an annoyed grunt.

"_Shut up bitch! I am me, she is she...the shadow clone technique along with chakra, divides the user's soul into small fragments and since the seal is now weakened...hey watch it fox punk or I'll clobber you _(she's saying this to a baby fox in the forest mindscape)_...ahm as I was saying you sucker, and since the seal is weakened the original me's soul is divided too'_, said clone Ayumi while Naruto sweatdropped at her rather peculiar way of explanation

'_Hmm...it seems that Ayumi's personality changes too...but I never thought she had this side too'_, he thought amusedly before replying.

"_Okaaay..."_, he trailed off to signify he understood most of it.

"_There's nothing 'okaaaay' about this monkey butt...now shut up and do something useful with your short lived existence for once before the boss dispels you"_, she said with irritation in her voice while the clone's eyebrows twitched, his face red fuming in anger before he took deep breaths to calm himself much to the confusion of Kurenai.

"Naruto-kun...what's wrong?", she said while he zoomed out to see her amused face.

"Just my crazy tenant..", he muttered as he explained her the situation while she giggled at his situation.

"Oh...well that's...troublesome", she said mimicking our lazy someone while Naruto nodded with her.

"But if you're a clone...then where's the original one?", she said with a raised eyebrow.

"Well...I can't tell you right now Kurenai-chan...but you'll know very soon, it's a surprise for you, Anko-chan and the other two who I still have yet to meet...thanks to you", he said with annoyed expression at the last part making her grin sheepishly.

"Well the main reason I came here was so that you could meet them...but seeing as Naruto-kun is busy somewhere else...it can wait a little bit", she said with a smile while the clone nodded with her, a smile itself on his face at seeing that she cared for him so much.

"Hmm...I'm really eager to meet them...but it seems that that'll have to wait. But still, you haven't told me about Hinata-chan. How is she?", he said with a concerned expression while Kurenai nodded.

"Well I was training my team before I decided to go see you. And I have to tell you...that there has been tremendous improvement in Hinata that I've noticed in these two-three days of training, both as a person and as a kunoichi & her abilities. She now barely stutters, takes participate in team decisions, is a bit more confident but each day, she's improving at a tremendous rate...and the most important thing is that she's dying to meet you Naruto-kun. I think she has visited your apartment & your hospital room upto twenty times now", said Kurenai while Naruto couldn't help the smile that was now etched on his face. It would seem that his pre-lecture of the preliminaries along with the activation of her new Byakugan did some wonders to her persona.

"Seeing you fight...and the crazy display of power you put in the preliminaries keeps pushing her everyday to become stronger", she said with a smile while Naruto rubbed his back head sheepishly.

'_Thank Kami Hinata-chan...I'm so happy for you'_, he thought before another question appeared in his mind.

"But what about her clan...how did they take to it? More importantly, how did Hiashi take to it?", he said while Kurenai signalled him to slow down making him blush in embarrassment.

" Well...this part would surprise you. It would seem that the Hyuga clan now practically worships her as the rare prodigy which comes in a hundred years or something. Seeing her do something which has never been done before, made their pride for their clan sky rocket making them more arrogant while Hinata has become their pride", she said with an offhand expression while Naruto's expression remained calm, well this was something he found logic in but it still surprised him and angered him and they changed their opinion of her so suddenly just because she was now stronger than before.

"What's more, after she was discharged from the hospital, Hiashi being a stuck up idiot forced her into a match with Hanabi hoping to see Hinata's new Byakugan in action. And the results? Well Hiashi's jaw dropped when Hinata was able to defeat Hanabi without using the upgraded Byakugan...hehe, it would seem that she was just lacking the confidence & the will to fight", said Kurenai while Naruto nodded with her with a proud smile.

"So, ultimately Hanabi became enraged but Hiashi intervened. And you wouldn't believe it, he smiled at Hinata...SMILED! I've never seen him do that. After that, the next day he himself fought Hinata and to my surprise too, she was able to last three minutes against him going all out, while she used her new Byakugan. In the end, she had hit some chakra points, which had not only disturbed his chakra flow but also there was partial paralysis in his right arm", said Kurenai with a faraway look on her face while Naruto's jaw dropped, he definitely hadn't expected that.

"And that Neji kid had an angered look on his face after seeing the match. It would seem that the title of the Hyuga prodigy went to Hinata making him jealous, and add to the fact that he saw you fight Lee in the preliminaries he's really pushing himself in training every day, if anything Guy told was close to truth", she continued while he nodded with a serious face, it would seem not only Neji, but other genin too would be much stronger in the finals, he too would have to start his training as soon as possible.

"What about the those stuck up Hyuga elder advisors?", said Naruto while Kurenai sighed.

"The first thing they demanded was for Hinata to get married and prevent her from going to missions to preserve the sacred Byakugan as they call it. And that's where I was thrown for the loop...Hiashi straight out refused them making the elders shout in rage and what not, but ultimately it was decided to give Hinata her rightful freedom as the future heir of the clan", she said while Naruto looked at her in suspicion.

"How were you able to listen in their meetings? I heard that they don't let any outsider participate in it", said Naruto, his arms crossed over his chest while Kurenai smiled at him.

"I'm not called Genjutsu Mistress for nothing Naru-kun. There's a reason I'm a jounin at such a young age. I've some genjutsu techniques which not even Byakugan or Sharingan can penetrate through", said Kurenai making Naruto look at her in admiration, talking to her with such familiarity & closeness had made him forget just who he was talking to.

"Ah..gomen Kurenai-chan", he said with an apologetic smile while a mischievous glint took place in Kurenai's ruby red eyes.

"A sorry will not do Naruto-kun", she said with a devious grin while Naruto tilted his head sideways in confusion.

"Then what do you want me to do?", he said questioningly while a blush formed on her cheeks as she started fidgeting much to his confusion.

"Well?", he again asked while the blush on her cheeks darkened.

"W-Well you s-see...maybe you c-could...take me out for dinner?", she said out of nowhere with a hopeful look in her eyes while Naruto just smiled at her.

"Of course! That's the least I can do for you...and oh I know...we can invite Anko-chan & Hinata-chan too, and also Shikamaru & Chouji", said Naruto with an innocent smile making Kurenai sweat drop at his soberness. Though Naruto was a genius in most of the things, he was a bit dense when it came to females seeing as he had so little interaction with him. And the books he read in the library or by stealing, they were always about training or anything related to being a shinobi & their history, and the only way he picked up about Hinata's crush on him was because that she was painfully obvious. But he was dense enough to not pick up subtle hints that Kurenai & Anko were giving him. And he picked up Kushina's possible feelings towards him because she too was being obvious with her blushing & all, but here Kurenai was expertly hiding these things. Moreover, he didn't know about how these dating, boyfriend-girlfriend customs worked. So he had no idea what Kurenai was asking, if he had, he probably would have stuttered & blushed like crazy. But one thing he knew was that if you take a girl out alone to eat with you, then it was a date.

"N-No...what I meant was that we go o-out alone"...bull's eye, now he understood.

"W-What?", he stuttered, his eyes wide as a dark blush formed on his face.

"It's okay if you don't want to...it's not like I wouldn't forgive you or anything", said Kurenai with a visibly saddened look making Naruto's heart clench at the sight. She had always taken care of him, watching out for him even when the hokage had prohibited them, those crimson eyes always had that caring look in them along with a shadow of love which warmed his heart every time he looked in them. Moreover she was very beautiful to boot, and the fact that her gentle smile could always brighten his day.

"No! It's not like that Kurenai-chan, of course I'll go out with you", he said with a frantic look on his face while Kurenai's face instantly brightened up before she hugged him.

"Oh thank you Naruto-kun...you're so cute...how about we go to Ichiraku's day after tomorrow as tomorrow I have a solo mission?", said Kurenai with a megawatt smile while Naruto nodded with a grin, Ichiraku's ramen was perfect for him.

"Sure I guess", said Naruto with a smile while he was all nervous inside.

"_What would boss say when he knows about this?"_, he unknowingly groaned inwardly.

'_Probably will shove a Rasengan up your ass'_, said the alternate Ayumi making his eyebrows twitch inwardly.

'_Shut up Ayumi! And what the hell's a Rasengan anyway?'_, he asked inwardly in irritation.

"_You'll know soon clone-baka"_, she said with a smirk. Concentrating outside, he saw a dreamy sigh escape Kurenai's lips as she giggled to herself, probably thinking about the date making him sweatdrop.

"Um...if you don't mind, I have to go get some ramen", he said while getting stars in his eyes at the mention of ramen making Kurenai sweatdrop this time.

"Oh sure, I too was going to meet Anko, Yugao & Hana", she said as she prepared to take off before Naruto suddenly hugged her warmly.

"Stop wearing these stupid masks Kurenai-chan and tell Anko-chan to avoid her psycho mask as much as she can, let the world know who you truly are. And if someone has a problem with them, you four can gang up and kick their asses", he said with a grin before releasing her and jumped off in the direction of Ichiraku leaving her just standing there, as she smiled warmly at his diminishing figure. Sighing to herself, she chuckled while shaking her head before she dispelled the genjutsu and took off.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Konoha-Ichiraku's Ramen Stand<strong>_

* * *

><p>"Anybody here? Oji-san?", said the clone with a bright smile as he entered the stand and sat down on the stool, eager to see his two precious people who had fed him since he himself didn't know. Last time he saw them, they were killed brutally in front of him, making him sad as he remembered that horrifying event, even though it was only a genjutsu it was still etched deep into his mind. Shaking his head out of those thoughts he concentrated on the voice that came from the back, or rather the increasing sound of footsteps before he was greeted to a sight of a brightly smiling Ayame.<p>

"Naruto-kun!", she exclaimed in glee before jumping over the counter, and engulfed him in a tight hug, while tightly clutching him.

"How are you? Are you alright? We heard that you were in the hospital and were injured badly. We went there to check up on you, but those Anbu idiots wouldn't let us see you! But, are you okay now?", she said non-stop, her voice drenched in worry for her little brother-like figure as she closely examined him for any injuries making him blush in embarrassment, but he was thankful for the curtain which provided some privacy for the customers.

"I'll be fine if you stop worrying for so much Ayame-chan", he said with a teary eyed smile whereas she glared at him.

"I wouldn't if you weren't so reckless", she chided him while he just smiled brightly at her with a lump in his throat, before he suddenly took her in a bone crushing hug.

"I'm just glad that... I have you and oji-san", he said in a chocked voice as a lone tear streamed down his face while he clenched his eyes shut. Ayame face turned into a mixture of red & blue, red because Naruto had never displayed such affection to her and blue because he was choking her.

"Naruto-kun...what's wrong?", she asked in a concerned tone while he just shook his head when she noticed his white trench coat.

"Hey...your clothes...your hair...Naruto-kun, what happened?", she again asked, this time forcefully as she grabbed his shoulders, a mixture of stern & a concerned expression on her face as she watched a few more tears stream down his face.

"Nothing Ayame-chan...I'm just happy...really, it's nothing", he said with a chuckle as she wiped his tears, nodding hesitantly. She wouldn't push the subject if he didn't want to, besides he always shared everything with them, so she knew he would tell them in time when he was ready. Now backing off a little bit, she noticed his transformed form before the slightest shade of pink dusted her cheeks.

'_Wow...he's so handsome...and cute too...that's a pretty rare combination'_, she thought as she smiled at him warmly.

"I don't know what happened to you Naruto-kun...but one thing I know is that you have become really handsome...so tell me, how many girlfriends do you already have?", she asked with a teasing grin while he blushed at the question.

"A-Ayame-chan...there's nothing like that", he stuttered while she nodded with an all knowing smile before she went behind the counter while whistling to herself and shouted for Teuchi to come who apparently hadn't recognised Naruto's a bit more baritone than before voice.

"But promise me one thing...when you go on a date, the first place you bring her will be here...I too wanna see who will be the lucky girl...hmm, I will bet on that cute Hinata girl", she said with a thinking face while Naruto blushed heavily as he coughed to regain his composure. Well, he had been thinking of asking Hinata out on a date but lately, he hadn't got the time to do it. And besides, he & Kurenai had a date after tomorrow, what was he supposed to say? How was he going to explain this to Hinata, he knew it would break her heart if she caught wind of it. He was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a familiar voice.

"Naruto! How are you?", said Teuchi as he ruffled his hair affectionately much to his irritation, but he couldn't help but smile at his father-like figure.

"I'm fine now Oji-san", he said with a smile whereas Teuchi adopted a face of shock.

"And...whoa...what the hell happened to you? But...man you look cool in that outfit", he said with a smile while Naruto rubbed his back head sheepishly, whereas Ayame just watched both of them interact with a smile.

"Yeah...I guess. But I'll tell you guys later. I'm in a hurry, so I want lots of miso & chicken ramen with some wakama seeds packed!", he said giddily with a grin.

"Coming right up sir", said Teuchi with a salute making them laugh before he started preparing the order with Ayame. Meanwhile Naruto just sat there, his palm under his chin as he reminisced over the sweet memories he had of this place. He was brought out his thoughts when he saw someone come in through the curtains making his eyes widen.

"M-Mizukage-sama?", he said with a stutter, a blush on his face as he remembered the event which led him to flee from the hospital in the first place.

"Oh...I expected to meet you here Naruto-san, considering the things I heard about you. And didn't I tell you to call me just Mei?", she said with a sweet smile as more people entered the shop, or more specifically females. He noticed more entering the shop out of the corner of his eyes, not taking the time to look at them as he was overcome by a bit of fear.

'_Did she brought these women to gang up on me? Well but I did apologized to her earlier'_, he thought as he gulped while Mei looked at him in confusion along with others.

"Um...hey, if it is about earlier...I again apologize", said the clone as he prayed to Kami to prolong his short lived existence. Meanwhile a blush crept on Mei's smile as she remembered the feeling of his face buried in her breasts.

"O-Oh...it's nothing Naruto-san, there's nothing to forgive. Besides it was only an accident", she said with a smile while Naruto released the breath he didn't know he was holding.

'_Though I wouldn't mind if the accident happens again'_, she thought while her blush darkened before she lightly shook her head. Turning his head, he noticed three females standing there looking at him with a blush, a smirk with a light blush and an amused expression. A light blush dusted his whiskered cheeks when he noticed how beautiful the first two were.

"Ah...seems you have noticed them...these are Yugito-Nii, Samui-Nii and Karui", said Mei as she pointed at them while Naruto was feeling a bit uncomfortable between four women, he was not used to this dammit! Especially when all of them were staring at you intently.

"N-Nice to meet you", said heavily blushing Yugito as she bowed while Naruto looked at her in confusion, before he too bowed to her with a smile.

'_Nibi! I swear to Kami...JUST SHUT THE HELL UP FOR ONCE YOU PERVERT!'_, screamed Yugito inside her head as she clutched her head outside in frustration while Samui was immediately by her side.

"Onee-san, is she troubling you again?", said Samui in a whisper but Naruto clearly heard her due to his heightened senses as he & Mei looked at Yugito in confusion while you could see concerned faces of Karui & Samui.

"_Yo fucker, use your Rinnegan & check her out"_, said Ayumi making Naruto blush.

"_W-What! I am not a pervert!"_, he said inwardly with a frown before he heard a tired groan.

"_What an idiot...you motherfucker, asshole, son of a...never mind, I was talking about checking her chakra coils! And besides they have already seen your doujutsu in the preliminaries so don't shiver like a coward and do some work you useless clone"_, she_ said, _almost screaming while Naruto blushed in embarrassment before he decided enough was enough.

"_Now listen here you bitch! YOU are the tenant here and I AM the jailor here. So why don't you take your crap in the corner and shove it .ASS, if you even got ONE!"_, he said with an inward satisfied smirk when he heard a loud growl.

"_You no good stinking shit, HOW DARE YOU TALK TO ME...", _her voice trailed as the clone zoomed her out when he noticed that Yugito was gritting her teeth while Mei, Samui & Karui were by her side.

"Yugito-san...what's wrong? Is it her?", asked Mei with a concerned face. Over the span of two days, Mei & Yugito, Samui, Karui had become good friends and formed their own group to stroll around the village while Kirabi, Omoi, Ao & Choujiro had their own group roaming around the village.

"Don't worry Mei-san, it sometimes happens", said Karui with a serious expression while Mei nodded with her. All of their eyes widened when they felt the same calm & peaceful aura wash over the area along with a chakra spike painfully close to them, they turned when they gasped upon seeing Naruto, his Rinnegan activated while he was staring intently at Yugito, who too was looking at him wide eyed with a blush on her face as she felt his gaze. Strangely, the frustration she was feeling a moment ago was no longer there as if someone was healing her mental health.

"N-Naruto-san...", trailed Mei as she looked at his form with a small blush.

'_Wow...he looks even more attractive with those eyes'_, thought Mei as she looked him over.

'_Now those eyes are what you call cool'_, thought Samui while on the outside she had a stone expression on her face.

'_Her chakra coils...there's that mixture of youki & chakra...so she really is a jinchuriki like me. Why couldn't I feel it like in case of Gaara?'_, he thought before that same annoying but sweet voice interrupted him.

"_It's because of that bloodlust the red shit was constantly releasing. But considering her constant blush along with her aroused state, I'd say it's the Nibi"_, saidAyumi while Naruto nodded with her.

"Yugito-san...you're a jinchuriki, aren't you?", he said out of nowhere in a low voice making the eyes of four of them widen in surprise.

"Nibi no Nekomata I presume?", he said with a serious expression as he closed the distance between him & Yugito, who blushed a bit at the closeness.

"H-How did you know?", she stuttered as she gazed into his eyes along with Mei & Samui while Karui rolled her eyes at their actions. Raising his eyebrow, he pointed his finger towards his purple eyes and to add to the effect, he pulsed more chakra in his eyes which glowed for a second.

'_Now THAT is the coolest thing I've ever seen'_, thought Samui as she gazed into his eyes dreamily when he deactivated them much to her, Yugito & Mei's disappointment.

"_I'm sorry kitten...I was just kidding"_, said Nibi apologetically while Yugito sighed.

"_I know Nibi-chan, but please...sometimes your perverseness just gets too much for me"_, said Yugito with an inward smile.

"_I can't help it, it's in my nature... but I'll try to lessen it kitten"_, said Nibi before Yugito thanked her.

"Talking to her?", asked Naruto.

"O-Oh...yeah...do you talk with 'it' too?", she said with a hesitant expression while Naruto's eyes widened for a moment.

'_Must have known from seeing me use Ayumi's chakra or jiji must have told them'_, he thought before nodding with her.

"How is 'it' Naruto-san?", said Samui with a stoned expression, her eyes icy cold while inwardly she was smiling at Naruto.

"W-Well, you see...it's a she", he stuttered a bit by the look in her eyes but blushed when he noticed her beautiful face & her generous bust before he suddenly pasted his eyes on her face, he knew what was good for him.

"She?", exclaimed Yugito in surprise while Samui & Karui were shocked too before a smiled came upon their faces.

"Well what do you know, the strongest existence on this planet is a female", said Karui with a smirk while Naruto laughed sheepishly, before a look of realisation washed over his face.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself... the name's Uzumaki Naruto", he said with his foxy grin making Mei, Yugito & Samui blush while Karui smiled at him.

"Then I should introduce myself too, I am Terumi Mei, Godaime Mizukage of Kirigakure", said Mei playfully as she shaked hands with Naruto, both of them blushing a bit as they felt each other's skin.

"My name is Yugito Nii, jounin of Kumogakure", said Yugito with a smile as she shaked hands with him, a cute blush on her cheeks.

'_She's cute'_, he thought involuntarily before turning to Samui.

"I'm Samui Nii, adoptive sister of Yugito-Nee here", she said with a small smile before they shaked hands.

'_I don't know why, but I like that small smile of her'_, thought Naruto with an uplifting spirit in his heart as he turned to Karui.

"Name's Karui Naruto-san", she said before shaking his hand while Naruto smiled at them when he looked back to see his things were just finished getting packed up. An awkward silence fell between them as none of them spoke anything while Naruto noticed that Mei, Yugito & Samui were stealing glances at him though Mei & Samui were more subtle in it, well he too was glancing at them that's how he noticed in the first place after all.

Trying to start a conversation, he said, "For how long are you guys here in Konoha?", he asked politely before Mei answered.

"Well, we would be leaving in a few days seeing as us kages can't leave our villages for such a long time. But we would return in a month for the finals, after all we can't miss your match Naruto-san", said Mei with a teasing smile making Naruto blush.

"Oh now I remember...you were amazing in the preliminaries Naruto-san, those techniques you were pulling out there were atleast Chunin level, Raikage-sama told us about your red curse seal, so are you alright now?", said Yugito along with Samui, Mei & Karui looking at him questioningly while Naruto rubbed his back head with a smile.

"Oh...not to worry Yugito-san. I'm as healthy as ever", he said while flexing his biceps playfully making them laugh.

"You're fight with that green weirdo was great & all, but the most I enjoyed was the uber ass kicking the Uchiha got. Oh man, that made my day", said Karui with a grin while Mei, Samui & Yugito smiled hesitantly at the topic as they watched Naruto's expression.

Naruto was a bit visibly saddened when Karui reminded him of the fight, he was still angry at Sasuke for saying about something he didn't know. Although he didn't want to beat him so much, but that was the most emotional fight of his life. At that time, he was not only beating Sasuke, but also releasing his pent up frustrations & anger, only Sasuke became the scapegoat this time. He still remembered what Itachi had told him when he was telling about his own childhood and about the days when he was called the Uchiha prodigy of the village-

'_Naruto-kun, although you're quite matured for your age, Sasuke is still a child on the inside even if he doesn't act like it. His mind can be easily tainted by a master manipulator such as Danzo or Orochimaru, he has one track mind and would do anything to kill me. You are like a brother to me Naruto-kun, and I ask you to try to make Sasuke avoid walking the path of an avenger which he so proudly calls himself. And if the situation arises where you think that he cannot be changed, then... you must kill him for the village's & everyone's sake'_

He remembered that by the end, a rare lone tear had streamed down Itachi's face when he talked about possibly killing Sasuke, and he too was in tears when Itachi had called him his brother. He had always wanted an older brother who could look out for him and the Uchiha prodigy was more than willing to fulfil that.

"Naruto-san...", started Mei with a concerned expression on her face as she watched his saddened eyes, which strangely clenched her heart, which was also the case with Yugito & Samui while Karui was looking at him with an apologetic , Mei was interrupted when suddenly Ayame along with Teuchi came out with ten-fifteen bowls of packed ramen.

"So here is your order Naruto-kun...oh, please take a seat, your order will be taken in just a minute", said Ayame when she noticed others standing there.

"Thanks Ayame-chan! See you later", said the clone with a smile which Ayame returned with a caring one as he put the bill on the counter and created some shadow clones who took the bowls and exited the stand. Before leaving, the clone turned to the four saddened figures with a smile.

"Ah...and don't worry Karui-san, there's nothing to forgive...and you three, please don't be sad. You look much more beautiful when you smile. I have to go now, but I'll meet you later. Ja ne!", he said with a grin before vanishing from their sights leaving Mei, Yugito & Samui with a dark blush.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback End<strong>_

* * *

><p>He smiled as he thought about how Hinata was doing, but blushed when he thought about the date with Kurenai. How was he going to explain this to Kushina &amp; Hinata, speaking of his ex-mother, he noticed that she was sometimes deliberately rubbing herself against his back which oddly made him feel immensely good, but he miraculously kept the blush to himself as he kept thinking of the clone's memories. Though he smiled amusingly when he recalled about the clone version of Ayumi, much to the embarrassment of the original one. Now we find Naruto standing on the Shodaime's head with Kushina on his back, a giddy expression on her face.<p>

"Wow...Konoha's as good as new now...no even better than what it was a day ago!", said Kushina with a bright smile as she looked around in wonder while Naruto sweatdropped at her.

"It was all destroyed buildings and rubble a day before Kaa-san", he said with a smirk when Kushina playfully pinched him on the cheek.

"OW!"

"You're no fun Naru-kun...mommy now would have to punish you", she said with a teasing grin making Naruto gulp, when he felt her squishing her bust against his back while she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"K-Kaa-san...s-stop", he said with a furious blush as he struggled to keep himself in control and not have his way with her, and Ayumi wasn't helping him too. Thankfully, the rescue came in the form of distant shouts as he strained his enhanced hearing senses to hear them.

"Hmm...it seems someone has fled the village without the monkey's authorisation", said Kushina in a thinking pose while Naruto's eyes widened before he looked at her over his shoulder.

"You can hear them too?", he said with a surprised expression.

"Of course duh! My senses were already improved before the seal was broken, it's not like the changes would get reversed by itself", she said after rolling her eyes.

"But...who could've fled?", he whispered to himself when he heard her serious voice.

"Let's go meet the monkey...it's time that I settle this with him & the council", she said while tightening her grip on him as he nodded and jumped towards the Hokage tower.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha-Hokage Tower-Hokage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>Sarutobi was sitting besides his crystal ball, looking for any signs of one missing Uchiha Sasuke as he rubbed his temples in frustration. He was just discussing with Raikage &amp; Mizukage about the treaty facts when suddenly news barged in that the last Uchiha was missing from his ward. Ofcourse, the Raikage &amp; Mizukage were pretty much happy to help as they were bored of doing nothing but paperwork. So now he was left here alone, doing nothing but observing and giving orders.<p>

He suddenly whipped his head when he heard a violent sound of his window crashing, along with some grunts.

"Ow my butt...I told you it was not a good idea to crash through his window, but thankfully they're of low quality", said a male voice amidst the rubble smoke while Hiruzen's eyebrows twitched.

'_This was the third time I replaced a window this week. And who dares call these top class windows a low quality'_, he thought as he got rid of his robes to get ready in his battle gear for any possible attacks.

"Well I knew the monkey was an idiot, he's always had such a poor taste", the smoke cleared out for Hiruzen's jaw to drop on the floor when he noticed just who had crashed from the open sky.

Opening their eyes groggily, Naruto's & Kushina's eyes widened when they noticed a skimpy old skeleton wearing battle gear. A chuckle escaped their lips as they clamped their mouth to contain it before they burst into full blown laughter while Hiruzen just couldn't comprehend what the hell was going on?

"K-Kushina-chan...is t-that you?", stuttered Hiruzen as he took a step towards her but a look of confusion crossed his face when he noticed both of them laughing...at him? What was wrong with him?

"AHAHAHA...old man look at yourself, you look like a clown in that gear and what's with that tight clown cap?", said Naruto as he rolled on the floor while holding his stomach making a vein pop on the professor's forehead. Meanwhile Kushina had her own reasons of laughing.

"Ohehehe...you've become so old you monkey...look at you...a rusted kunai", she said while pointing at him while wiping the tears from her eyes making Sarutobi fume in anger.

"Shut up! FOR THE LAST TIME I'M NOT OLD"

"Then how come your hair's so white, did...AHAHAHAHA...d-did a sheep gifted it to you?" said Kushina making Naruto laugh harder while Hiruzen gritted his teeth in anger. Though the shock of Kushina still alive immediately made him serious.

"Kushina...how are you still alive?"

WHAM!

Naruto's eyes widened when the next thing he heard was the sound of a violent crash, with Kushina standing where Sarutobi was, a furious look on her face with the single tomoe of her Sharingan spinning rapidly. Her fist stretched where exactly the hokage's jaw was while Naruto turned his head to see the professor buried deep in the concrete of the wall as he coughed up blood, the debris flying in all directions around the office.

'_I really pity you now old man'_, thought Naruto as he prayed to Kami to have mercy on his old bones.

* * *

><p>'<em><strong>Sigh'<strong>_**, so did you like it or not? And also, please review you guys the last chapter got the least reviews until now T_T. Here are the current stats of this fic-**

**Reviews-1079(duh! you can already see it lol ^_^)  
>C2's-52<br>Hits-232,327  
>Favourites-1076<br>Alerts-922 (Well I know that there are countless other fics there that have much better stats than this, but hey this is my first fic and considering the amount of time & the words in which I got these stats, I'm pretty happy about it...hehe)**

**Aaannnnd did you notice something odd here?...The reviews are almost equally to favourites which brings me to the topic of the least reviews in the last chapter. Now suppose, 500 out of 1000 people who like this fic read the updated chapter, then what's the cinch if atleast like 70-80 of them review? Now I'm not just greedily asking for reviews, it's just that I like every other author puts so much time & hardwork into putting these chapters and only 45-48 persons are reviewing?...It just makes us feel that our efforts are not enough, and if they are not enough then tell us so. So atleast a comment about if you liked the chapter or not would be reaaalllly appreciated, even one or two words are appreciated in a review. Also I've noticed that the chapter which gets the highest reviews is usually the action packed chapter or where Kushina had reunited, so what about the other chapters which authors strain their asses to write, are they just like...worthless...well they are important for the plot to progress. It's just that I can't seem to understand that out of like 800-900 people, atleast 70-80 of them can review ne? And remember that each & every review matters to authors, it doesn't matter if you're an author yourself or if you're just a reader, and that's the main reason I've kept the anonymous reviews turned on even if I get some flames through it.**

**Also, I know that the pace was slow in the previous chapters and I thank the reviewers for reminding me of it. So please, a greater response from those who atleast 'like' this fic would be appreciated. But still, I'm happy that so many of you like this fic and if you don't like something in the updated chapter, you can tell me so and I'll see what I can do (but I wouldn't pave my fic solely based on your ideas lol).**

**So _'sigh'_, really sorry for the rant there ^_^ and until next time, don't forget to PM if you have any questions or just ask in the reviews and I'll PM you back. And again, sorry for the rant but I just had to flush it out... So take care and Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	17. A Mother's Wrath

**Hi guys, so here's another quick update you've been waiting for. And thanks for the reviews in the last chapter…I appreciate it! And also, one more thing that I wanted to say was that for those love brother-sister incest (like me ^_^), they should check out 'Knife of Romance' by 'Inugrrrrl' (If you haven't read of course) which you can find on my favorite stories page. It's a Inuyasha fic, though if you haven't watched the series, still you can read it considering that it's a modern day fic. But personally, it is one of the best incest fics I've ever read, so you should give it a try. Now on with the chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-17-A Mother's Wrath<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>I pity you old man'<em>, thought Naruto as he prayed to Kami to have mercy on his old bones.

"K-Kushina….wha-", Sarutobi was interrupted when suddenly his neck was painfully grabbed by Kushina, who had blurred out of nowhere.

'_Fast!'_, was the only thing Naruto could think while Ayumi was inwardly smirking to herself.

'_You've seen nothing Naruto-kun'_, she thought with an amused smile as she too watched the scene going on through Naruto's eyes.

"!", she yelled while gritting her teeth, her eyes blood red with one black tomoe, her expression clearly defining her unrestrained fury. Meanwhile Naruto too could feel her intense anger coming off in waves.

'_She's scary'_, he thought with a nervous expression while he understood what Shikamaru really meant when he complained about his crazy mother.

"YOU'LL BE THE ONE ANSWERING MY QUESTIONS HERE OLD MAN!", she screamed at his face while Hiruzen's eyes were as wide as they could, blood seeping down his bruised jaw, probably dislocated from the ferocious sucker punch.

'_Sharingan! What the hell is going on here?...how could Kushina…as far as I know she never had an eye transplant….and how come Naruto is with her?...Oh crap!_', his face paled when he realised that Naruto probably knew that Kushina was his mother, but the biggest question here was: How was Kushina alive?

'_But we never did found her body…..on the other hand looking at her, she doesn't look one day old than the last time I saw her thirteen years ago'_, thought the professor as he tried to process the unexplainable situation that he suddenly found himself in out of nowhere. How was one supposed to react in these types of circumstances? It doesn't matter if you're the leader of a village when suddenly a person who was supposed to be dead, mother of his grandson-like figure barges in your office like that, he was totally clueless right now as to what to do.

Though his & Naruto's eyes widened when suddenly Kushina, using her right hand started writing some complex circular seals in midair just right of her, her sky blue chakra from her fingers illuminating the seal. Her speed with which her hands were making strokes in midair was a blur to Naruto's untrained naked eye as compared to Sarutobi's. The fluency & precision with which she was making the strokes was breath-taking to Naruto.

"_Amazing….Ayumi-chan, do you see that?"_, he asked inwardly in a giddy voice whereas Ayumi started giggling, sometimes his curiousness & easy to excite personality when it came to shinobi arts was so adorable.

"_That's your mama for you Naruto-kun"_, said the strongest bijuu with a nauseate smile, while he just kept watching the way her hands fluently moved, as if enchanting his electric blue eyes & his ever curious mind. He could look like a cool strong shinobi to his the rookie nine or the other genins because of his Rinnegan and all, but his mother just took the cake when it came to totally looking like a kick-ass kunoichi.

"Fuin!", she exclaimed after slamming her hands on the seal and rotating her palm in a clockwise direction, as if locking it.

"There….now no one will interrupt us, no matter how strong they are….they wouldn't be able to get past my seal barrier. So…..", she trailed off while taking deep breaths, desperately trying to calm herself. She had lost it when Sarutobi had asked her that how was she alive, and was now cursing herself for exploding like that. But when it came to Naruto, she wasn't going to forgive anybody responsible for his crappy life up until now.

"K-Kushina…..what…..", the Sandaime trailed off when he noticed her murderous glare.

"I told you that I'll be the one asking questions here…now as to the question of how am I alive, that I'll explain later. Why did I punch you, that too I'll explain later. But first explain me…", she grabbed him by his samurai vest rougly, "WHO GAVE YOU THE RIGHT TO **DESTROY MY SON'S CHILDHOOD**?", she practically spat at him, her voice becoming demonic while a black slit formed in her Sharingan, surrounding which was a tomoe, making even Hiruzen tremble in fear of her wrath, that was all concentrated on him now. But he atleast now understood why the hell was she acting like this?

He sighed showing a tired face, which could only be hosted by an old man, the one who has seen all kinds of days and was probably tired of it all. Seeing his face made Kushina pity the guy somewhat, he was precious to her alright, but right now her wrath was on all time high and she'll be damned if she let that council and him get away with this.

"I knew one day when I died, I had to answer to you & Minato, though I was not expecting it to be so soon", he said with a chuckle while Naruto sweatdropped.

'_I think jiji's lost it'_, he thought while Kushina narrowed her eyes at the Kami no Shinobi.

"**Shut your philosophical crap and** **ANSWER my questions!**", she said, her eyes glowing red for a second. If there was anyone else in place of Sarutobi, he/she would've probably fainted just by the intimidating stare that Kushina was currently weighing upon the old Hokage.

"If you've met Naruto then I presume that somehow….you must have seen his memories", said the miraculously conscious Sarutobi while Kushina nodded ever so slightly.

"I tried to protect him Kushina….I would've never told the villagers about Naruto being the jinchuriki just like in your case, but some Anbu and jounin that night had seen Minato seal the Kyuubi into Naruto…and the news just spread like wild fire throughout Konoha", he paused for a bit while Kushina nodded faintly, she had deduced this herself too and found some logic in it.

"I created a law that anyone who talks about Naruto's condition would be punishable by death, but the damage had already been done….and as you probably know that mobs woul-"

"**I ALREADY KNOW ALL THAT! I WANT TO KNOW WHY DIDN'T YOU DO ANYTHING?**", she growled while applying more pressure to his neck.

"I tried to…but…..", his voice turned into whisper which she couldn't hear.

"**WHAT WAS THAT?"**, she asked threateningly while Hiruzen sighed, he knew the answer he would give wouldn't be good for his health.

"It was the…council", he finally said it while Kushina clenched her other fist, which started to get white just from the pressure, youki began to arising out of her skin as she gritted her teeth. Her red hair defying gravity as they started to hover in air due to the demonic chakra force, a small crater forming beneath her feet while Hiruzen was further pushed into the wall by his neck. Meanwhile, Naruto's eyes widened when he noticed her growing out-of-control state.

'_She's losing control….I have to do something quick!'_, he thought before extending his right palm, facing in the direction of where Kushina was standing. Meanwhile Hiruzen too started to wince when he felt the rising youki hurting the skin around his neck, while Kushina's nails started to extend into claws. When he had uttered those four words, her whole world had gone blank with nothing but only red in front of her eyes. Pure rage, fury…she was feeling pure hatred towards this man as well as the council & those villagers. He meant to tell her that the council, those fucking old advisers were influencing his decisions concerning Naruto. Well that was bullshit!

"**Youuuh!…..YOU BASTARD!**", she yelled as a sky blue ball of spiraling chakra started to form in her right hand, it's size increasing until it was covering her whole palm while her other hand was holding Hiruzen tight against the wall who had his eyes widened as he watched the menacing ball of chakra before a sad look came into his eyes, the look of a man who had accepted his fate.

'_I guess…this is it. I'm sorry…Naruto, Kushina, Minato'_, thought the old leader as he closed his eyes, a remorseful expression on his face.

Naruto didn't know what the hell was she trying to do, but he knew that the beautiful looking glowing ball of chakra was lethal and he knew that with Kushina's insane speed, he won't be able to reach there in time. His right palm still extended towards Kushina, he whispered just as the ball was about to come in contact with Hiruzen's stomach.

"**Banshou Tenin **(All Creation Attraction)"

Kushina's eyes widened when suddenly she felt herself being pulled back roughly by an unexplainable force, however Sarutobi's eyes widened too when he too himself felt the pull which Naruto hadn't intended to do, before both of them flew/skidded towards Naruto at high speeds. The blonde jinchuriki's face paled when he saw the old skeleton fastly approaching him, just behind Kushina whose back was facing Naruto.

'_Oh shit…I didn't mean to do that'_, he thought just before he caught Kushina, his arms encircling her waist making him slide on the floor because of the momentum, before he jumped sideways with Kushina still in his arms, on impulse with speed he didn't know he had, successfully dodging the frail old body of the current hokage, who right now was screaming comically as he was on a painful collision course with a wall on the opposite side of Naruto.

"AAAAHHHHH"

CRACK!

All of this had happened in a span of a second or two.

'_Ow…that's gotta hurt…'_, thought Naruto with a nervous chuckle while he could hear Ayumi laughing her ass off. Right there, was buried deep in the wall was the body of one legendary Hiruzen Sarutobi, his head buried face first in the concrete as he groaned in pain.

"N-Naruto….you're going to get it now….", said the Hokage as he 'detached' himself from the wall, his face all bruised up & red from the face-first crash.

"S-Sorry….I still can't control that technique properly…..I only intended to pull Kaa-san away", said Naruto with a sheepish grin, Kushina still in his arms who hadn't spoken a word since Naruto had pulled her. Though the blonde jinchuriki stiffened when he felt her forcefully get out of his grasp, he gasped when he saw a furious expression on her face, fear instantly registering in his eyes at the possibility that she might beat him to a bloody pulp. Seeing the display of strength a moment ago, he couldn't help but be intimidated by her power, her bloodlust had practically filled the air, suffocated him and for a second, all of it was completely focused at him before Kushina realized that it was 'her' Naruto who was holding her before the faintest trail of pink registered on her cheeks, her anger vanishing instantly. She was so infuriated by the old coots answer that she just wanted to kill him….anybody right then….anything to destroy and he was the only thing in front of her. But when she felt herself being pulled, her anger increased for the one who had interrupted her.

However when she that it was Naruto, her anger had vanished instantly, replaced by a soft expression. She now remembered the feeling of his protective grasp & his firm arms around her waist. If there was anybody else, she would have given him/her a piece of her mind, but it was her Naruto. She couldn't even dream of doing anything that would harm her precious bundle of joy, her object of affection, her bright ray of sunshine, her source of eternal happiness & her…maelstrom. He was the only man she would allow to touch her in that way, and the pink tint on her cheeks was completely agreeing with her.

'_His grasp was so gentle, so warm…but yet so firm, so protective, so loving….oh Naru-kun'_, she thought, no signs of all the rage & anger she was feeling a moment ago, a dreamy sigh almost escaping her lips but seeing Naruto's apologetic face and in his eyes….fear? Instantly, she realized that he might have got intimated by her power, she knew about his experience in his first C-rank mission, when he was paralysed by fear seeing the demon brothers attack them. But now, he was not seeing a chunin or a jounin, he was seeing an enraged kage level kunoichi who had, even if for a second, concentrated that huge amount of bloodlust on him.

Meanwhile, Naruto couldn't help but fear those blood red eyes, who were concentrated on him, even if for a second, he couldn't help but be paralyse by fear. Though her expression had softened and those eyes had turned to their typical violet color with their usual warmth in them which was only reserved for him, he still couldn't help but fear her a bit. He wasn't saying that he didn't love her, oh…he loved her so much, he had finally met her after so many years and wouldn't leave her….ever. But seeing her…power…no, it was something else, he had already fought the likes of Orochimaru before. Though before too, he felt a bit of fear when he engaged Orochimaru or met Itachi's cold expression for the first time…but those eyes, his first-hand experience of seeing those bijuufied eyes had him frozen in place. Usually he was the one being engulfed in anger, and so didn't feel it's effects and this was his first time at feeling so much killing intent & bloodlust. Zabuza's bloodlust was nothing compared to this one.

'_Do I…look like that…every time I use Ayumi's chakra…those eyes…the bloodlust…it was suffocating'_, he thought with a bit of fear before inwardly steeling himself. No….he didn't want to appear weak in front of Kushina. What would she think about him if she gets to knows this….that he was scared by a bit of youki? He didn't want her to think that he feared her.

"I'm sorry Kaa-san….but I think…that maybe…you were going a little…too far?", he said with a painfully nervous smile, a small amount of fear clearly reflecting in his eyes as he involuntarily took a step back while Hiruzen watched them with a serious expression. He understood what Naruto was going through, the boy had first experience of being in the presence of youki, the intense bloodlust that washed Kyuubi's chakra. That was the same reaction of everyone from thirteen years ago when they felt Kyuubi's chakra, all of them were literally frozen in their places. Releasing such intense bloodlust was one thing, but being at the receiving end of it was on a whole other level.

Meanwhile, Kushina's eyes widened when she saw a small amount of fear in those usually bright orbs, a horrified expression on her face as a bit of moisture gathered in her eyes.

'_No….I cannot have him fear me….I want him to love me….not fear me'_, she thought frantically, not registering her own thoughts clearly.

"N-Naru-kun…..what's wrong?", she asked with a concerned expression as she slowly approached him, a bit shaken form. Though Naruto's demeanor took a one-eighty turn when he saw her concerned expression along with some wetness in her eyes, his eyes widening as he saw the pained look in her eyes.

'_She knows…damn it!'_

Immediately he dashed towards her and hugged her tightly, as if silently telling her that everything was alright. Kushina though surprised by the action, hugged him back tightly as if he was the most precious thing to her in the world. Tears of relief flowing down her face, both of them finding comfort in each other's warmth while Hiruzen couldn't help but smile at the duo.

'_Thank kami….I thought that he…'_, just at the thought, she almost bursted in tears. Though a pink tint grazed her cheeks when Naruto started to gently, but soothingly rub her back while his hot breath tickled her neck's unblemished porcelain skin. Naruto himself didn't register what he was doing, he had his eyes tightly closed, as if basking himself in the feeling of hugging her, as if berating himself for possibly fearing such a sweet & beautiful woman.

"I'm sorry Kaa-san…I'm an idiot", he whispered playfully, trying to lighten the mood, a sigh escaping his lips as he rested his head on her shoulders making her chuckle a bit as she lovingly caressed his back head.

"Yes…..but you are my baka", she said before her eyes bugged along with Naruto's when they realized what she had said.

'_Ooops…did I say that?'_

Naruto had a furious blush on his face as he contemplated her words, c'mon, he was not THAT dense.

"_Now do you need a more solid proof as to if she has feelings for you"_, asked Ayumi inwardly with a grin while Naruto's blush darkened.

Meanwhile Hiruzen couldn't stop his own perverted grin when he saw both of them blushing. He knew just from the hug, that was more to them than just a mother-son relationship and was bordering on incestuous. Though being a veteran and an experienced shinobi such as himself had opened his mind for just about anything, so he had no problem with incest and besides, it was a common practice in some of the clans. But he knew from Itachi's reports that Naruto's DNA had completely changed, so it wasn't even officially incest if they did pursue a romantic relationship from here on. And Naruto deserved love, especially the intimate one. If he could bear the hate of a large village like Konoha, they why couldn't he get smothered in love from atleast ten-fifteen girls. Jinchuriki needed love, plenty of it and in Naruto's case, he desperately needed it.

'_Oooh…I've got to tell Jiraiya about this….Icha-Icha-The Forbidden Fruit'_, he thought as he wiped the blood from beneath his nose before he accidently coughed because of the concrete dust around him, jerking the cute hugging pair apart from each other, pink tints on their cheeks, while the professor cursed the dust under his breath. Meanwhile Kushina wondered, when did it come to this. They were here to officially kick Hiruzen's ass and now they were hugging in front of the old pervert. Her eyes widened….

'_Oh no..'_, she snapped her head back to see a knowing grin on his face, a groan escaping her lips. Great, now he would constantly tease her & Naruto about each other. Though her mood immediately darkened when she remembered the main reason they had come here, she could spend time with her Naruto later. Wait…her Naruto? When did it come to this…though now she remembered that he had been 'her Naruto' all along whenever she thought about him, while a small blush dusted her cheeks unseen by Naruto but the old all-knowing professor had seen it, but decided to keep it to himself, he would tease her later. But right now, they had other matters to discuss…and he had to know how was she still alive.

"Naru-kun..", she said while Naruto looked at her, "….can you give us some privacy, I need to talk with the old man here", she said while Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"Why? I deserve to know everything...are you gonna keep secrets from me too?", he asked with a hurt voice, did she considered him an immature loudmouth child? Kushina turned her head and smiled warmly at him.

"No….you deserve to know everything Naru-kun and I'll tell you everything, but right now, I want you to go to your apartment and rest there…I also have to deal with others along with the old geezer here. Trust me Naru-kun…..Please?", she said with a smile, her violet eyes lovingly staring at him, a pleading look in them while Naruto just couldn't resist her, he was completely vulnerable to her cuteness. He sighed before nodding, however a devious grin took place on his face, one that Kushina didn't like but it sent a shiver of excitement down her spine. Slowly stepping close to her, he leaned in close to her ear, making her blush.

"Have fun", he whispered before kissing her cheek, and did something that it left even Ayumi slack jawed. He pinched her butt cheek making Kushina yelp in surprise, developing several shades of red on her cheeks as her mouth hung open in shock, as she watched him blink innocently. She couldn't found anything to retort, he had found her completely unprepared for this, but she can't say that she didn't enjoyed it.

"Kaa-san, Hokage-sama….Ja Ne!", he said with a grin, practically glowing before to Hiruzen's shock his body slowly turned/froze into ice, before it cracked and the broken ice particles fell on the floor while Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

"Wh-Where is he?", asked the Hokage with a concerned expression while Kushina still couldn't get rid of her blush, but answered him nevertheless.

"Ice Shunshin", she said before regaining her composure, having gone through his memories, she knew all about Naruto's training with Itachi and was proud, and herself was left bug eyed when she saw his progress in just two months.

"Now old man…..let's call the council shall we? I want to settle this right now", she said while flaring her sky blue chakra.

" But…Kushina-chan, you can't be serious! At this time-"

"DON'T, try my patience old man…I'm warning you….I'm in a very foul mood right now, and thank Naru-kun that he saved you before", she said with narrowed eyes, eyes full of hate while Hiruzen too was sweating bullets. Kushina was always like a daughter to him, so he knew that she wouldn't hurt him that badly….right? He knew that he wouldn't be able to stand up to her in a fight, even if he was in his prime, he would still doubt himself and with the addition of Sharingan, only Kami knew how strong she was now. The only thing he could do now was silently nod, oh but atleast there was one good thing to come out of this…..he would thoroughly enjoy the ass kicking that annoying civilian council along with his teammates & Danzo gets.

"And what's with the commotion in the village?", she said with so much authority that Hiruzen was thinking that he himself was talking to the Hokage while he was a genin.

"Hoka…I mean Kushina-chan….it would seem that someone has kidnapped Uchiha Sasuke, son of Uchiha Mikoto…most probably by Orochimaru", he said with a grim face while Kushina eyes widened ever so slightly.

"I see…well that boy was a lost cause anyway", she said with off handedly while Sarutobi's couldn't help but agree with her, lately that boy had been getting out of control and the curse seal just gave the last Uchiha the final push into the darkness.

"And what the fuck is this about the council anyway? This is a dictatorship old man….how can you give them so much power to start with anyway…they are supposed to be your advisors, they absolutely CANNOT make any decisions. You're the one who should have the final say…and you couldn't do flying fuck to help Naru-kun, you may have tried…but you failed desperately", she hissed with her anger rising with each word while Hiruzen could only sport a guilty expression on his face.

"Keeping him away from Kurenai, Anko, Yugao & Hana…what the fuck were you thinking? Giving him such a crappy apartment….atleast you could've made sure that he ate something nutritious….something BESIDES ramen….you could've bought him, if not gifted him some decent clothes, which you only did recently in the chunin exams…..but atleast your intentions were good and for that, I'm willing to forgive you IF you make up to Naruto somehow", she said with anger boiling in her violet eyes while Hiruzen nodded with a saddened expression.

"Hai…that's why I sent Itachi to train him…make him activate the Rinnegan if there was even a possibility. All these years I've been trying to somehow protect, but every thing I did, it somehow back fired on me. But still, I would try to make up to him", he said with a solemn expression while Kushina could see the honesty in his eyes. A small comforting smile grew on her face as she gazed at his down expression, she knew what the old guy had went through his shinobi life. Having lost his two sensei, one of whom deliberately sacrificed himself to save him & his comrades, he must have been burdened by that fact. Then his wife Biwako dies when she was helping Kushina give birth to Naruto and lastly Orochimaru, one of his favourite students turned out to be a traitor. It must be hard for him to get over all that and still rule over a large village such as Konoha.

Slowly approaching him, she hugged him gently while a small smile graced her beautiful flawless face.

"Although it's been a few hours, but still it's good to see you…I know you tried everything to do what you could…..but still thank you for caring for Naruto even if the results didn't turn out the way you expected. He's angry with you right now, but I can tell that you are very precious to him, so just give him some time. He has the most kind heart I've ever seen in someone….", she said in a comforting as she patted his back, her father-like figure while a lone tear escaped Hiruzen's eyebrows.

"And I'm sorry about earlier for bursting like that…but when it comes to Naru-kun, I just can't control myself. But if you still want to help him…then grow a backbone old man, show them that you're the professor, the one who fought through two great shinobi wars, the teacher of the three legendary sanins. You can't let the council do whatever they want….where's that will of fire which I saw in you when I was a kid. Your eyes…back then exuded confidence and a raging, but controlled fire in them….but now, they are dull, almost empty…don't tell me that you're giving up", she said in a soft voice still hugging him like a daughter did to a father.

"I'm just tired Kushina….I just want all of this to end, I've seen so much in this world….there's nothing left for me…..I don't think I can go on any longer", he said, his voice like that of tired, broken soul, a few tears escaping his eyes as Kushina hugged him tightly.

"Don't give up…EVER old man. What would we do if you…the leader gives up…what would your sensei say now if he were to watch you this broken. You promised the Nidaime that you would never let the will of fire distinguish right? Are you saying that you're just ignoring his last wish. And what about that Danzo….are you proving him right? Are you weak?", she said forcefully making his eyes widen as he remembered his sensei's last words as well what Danzo had said to him when he became the hokage.

'_Saru….You must protect those who have faith in you and who love the village, and train up those to whom you can entrust the next generation...because tomorrow you will be…Hokage'_

'_Hiruzen….you don't have what it takes to become the Hokage. A pacifist has no place in the world of shinobi….you can't force your idealism onto others….self-sacrifice is a shinobi's true worth. .weak…Sarutobi'_

'_Sensei…..arigatou'_, thought Sarutobi as a few tears escaped his closed eyes, streaming down his wrinkled face. He snapped open his eyes, which were now shining with determination, like they had succumbed themselves to long years of undisturbed slumber.

"Thank you…Kushina-chan…for reminding me just who I am. I guess I had forgotten myself…forgotten my dreams…forgotten my sensei's last words to me…forgotten that I had to prove Danzo wrong….but now I will do just what I should've been doing these past years", he said, the will of fire burning in his heart as bright as ever. Meanwhile Kushina couldn't help but smile at him before she released him from the hug, she could see the fire in his eyes now….that old dull reflection was gone, replaced by the azure bright flames.

"Kushina-chan….undo the barrier", he said in his authoritative tone, one Kushina knew so well when he was in his prime as a Hokage. Mock saluting him, she undid the barrier while Hiruzen went through a couple of hand signs before slamming his right hand on the ground while pouring large amounts of chakra.

"**Kuchiyose No Jutsu **(Summoning Technique)"

The area was covered in a large smoke before it cleared to show several small monkeys with one being slightly smaller than Sarutobi, all of them surrounding him, each having Konoha's headband on a limb.

"You called Sarutobi-sama?", said the biggest of them, his hair grey with him holding a staff while Hiruzen looked at him with a serious expression.

"Sarutsuko…I want to you & all of you, to track down Hatake Kakashi and inform him that under my orders, he is to stop searching for Uchiha Sasuke. And also ask him to tell everyone else to do the same", he said while others nodded before vanishing in blurs as they began to track down Kakashi.

"You're abandoning the search? You know that the civilians would be on your ass for this right? Especially your teammates…", said Kushina with a smirk as she knew what was coming.

"That's right….and I dare them to try. We've already licked the boy's boots enough…and that's why this has happened today. I don't care if the village loses the Sharingan, so far it has brought nothing but curse to this village. Besides….you & Itachi already have the Sharingan, and I have a hunch that if he wasn't kidnapped, he still would've left the village someday to track down Itachi", said Hiruzen with utter seriousness in his voice before he turned towards the exit.

"Come Kushina…it's time we teach those council idiots just whose the one running the village here", said Sarutobi before he exited the door followed by Kushina, who had a sadistic smile on her face.

* * *

><p><strong>Hi No Kuni-Unknown Location-Orochimaru's Hideout<strong>

* * *

><p>"Kabuto-kun….heal Sasuke-kun as fast as you can…it's about time that I give him the power he so desires. For Naruto-kun….I have other plans though..", said the snake sanin in a dark room while you could see, if faintly Sasuke's bandaged body lying on a old wooden bed, visibly more advanced medical setup surrounding the battered body of the last Uchiha.<p>

"Hai Orochimaru-sama", said Kabuto with a smirk as he started to prepare for his forbidden medical techniques.

'_For now….Sasuke-kun would do…but you're the ultimate prize here Naruto-kun…kukuku….with the legendary Rinnegan, even the leader of Akatsuki wouldn't be able to stand up against me, let alone Itachi. And with Tsuchikage agreeing with the 'Crush the Leaf' plan, along with two jinchuriki's along our side, we are unstoppable'_, he thought with a cruel smirk as he watched the unconscious Uchiha lay motionless in the dark room, faintly lit by the candles.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's Streets<strong>

* * *

><p>"Hmm…what do I do? I'm bored and I don't feel like going to my apartment so soon", groaned Naruto as he kicked a pebble, his hands behind his head as he leisurely walked. The streets were by now empty seeing as it was by now late at night, along with the orders of the Hokage, no civilian was to leave their home tonight as the last Uchiha was kidnapped.<p>

"Though I do wonder…what is this fuss all about?", he pondered as he idly kept walking under the brightly shining full moon.

"_If you're bored Naruto-kun….you can always come to me"_, said Ayumi seductively while Naruto blushed a bright red as he found her voice to be extremely arousing.

"_P-Pervert…"_, he said a bit weakly while Ayumi huffed.

"_Like you weren't feeling up Kushi-chan & that Kurenai woman when you were hugging them but you won't even touch me"_, she said with an accusing voice while Naruto's blush darkened whereas Ayumi giggled quietly, oh how easy it was to embarrass him, and it made him look so cute every time she did that.

"_I-It wasn't like that dattebayo! And what about the first time when we kissed!"_, he said before his eyes widened at what he said while he inwardly groaned.

'_Oh shit…'_, he thought he could feel Ayumi practically grinning like a fox, though he couldn't see the blush on her cheeks. True, that was the most amazing thing he had felt…and he couldn't help but remember that kiss from time to time.

"_Oooh…so you remember that huh? Well I too enjoyed that Naruto-kun…do you want to do it again?",_ she asked with such an innocent voice that Naruto almost complied to it.

"_S-Shut up Ayumi!"_, he exclaimed with a furious blush while blood seeped down his nose as he immediately wiped it.

"_So you don't want to kiss me? Am I ugly?"_, she said with fake sadness in her quivering voice making Naruto's eyes widen.

"_No! Ayumi-chan…it's not like that! You are very beautiful'ttebayo"_, he said frantically as a cute blush sported Ayumi's cheeks.

"_Hmph…you're probably lying…"_, she said with feigned hurt in her voice making Naruto more anxious. He couldn't bare to hurt her, he probably himself didn't know how precious she was to him. She had tried to help him since he was a child…she had done everything she could do and he too wanted to give her anything she wanted, he wanted to make her happy, he liked to make her smile, he liked her smile and sometimes that beautiful face of her was just irresistible though he wouldn't ever voluntarily admit it.

"_But…how can I prove to you? I'm really saying the truth"_, he said as he stopped in the middle of the streets while Ayumi patted himself for the job well done.

"_Well…hmm…you could always take me out for a date….you did said you like me right?"_, she said in a hopeful voice as her heart started beating faster, her breathing momentarily stopped as she waited for his answer while Naruto's cheeks flushed.

"_O-Oh...yeah, I do like you very much…so I'll be happy to go on a date with you, but wouldn't it be cheating if I go with you…because well…I also have a date with Kurenai-chan….and Hinata-chan…Kaa-san too….Kin-chan"_, he trailed off with a blush as those names automatically came to his head while Ayumi giggled cutely.

"_Oh Naruto-kun….you're so naïve…have you forgotten that you are to have atleast ten wives, so you are allowed to pursue multi-relationships…..so would you take me out for a date?", she again asked as she awaited his answer with bated breath._

"_Oh right…I almost forgot hehe….I'll be glad to go on a date with you Ayumi-chan",_ he said with an inward smile.

"Yessss!", Ayumi whooped quietly, "I'm going on a date with him…awesome!", she whispered to herself.

"_Huh…you said something Ayumi-chan?"_, said Naruto while Ayumi immediately stood straight.

"_Huh…no I didn't said anything Naruto-kun"_, she said in such an innocent tone that Naruto felt hard to believe that she had almost destroyed this village thirteen years ago.

"_But….how would we go on a date if you're trapped inside the seal?"_, said Naruto with a disappointed sigh, he was really forward to this date. And secretly he was hoping, a small part of his mind as well as his heart, that he could again kiss her.

'_NO!..Gosh..I'm becoming a pervert…it's all Ayumi's fault anyway…but…still it wouldn't be bad for just one more time'_, he thought with a blush on his face.

"_I have a way around that Naruto-kun..but first, push a little of your chakra into the seal"_, she said while Naruto just shrugged. He trusted her completely, so closing his eyes, he concentrated as he pushed a bit of his chakra into the seal. The next thing he heard was-

"_**Kage Bunshin No Jutsu"**_

His eyes bugged out anime style while his jaw crashed into the dirt when he saw Ayumi standing in front of him, as beautiful as ever while the moon light shone over her unblemished skin. She was in dark blue kimono, while a major part of her cleavage was revealed which made Naruto almost die in nosebleed.

"A-Ayumi-chan….what the..", he trailed as he pointed his trembling finger at her giggling form, his face pale like he had seen a ghost.

"Ehehe…you should see your face Naruto-kun…so, how do I look?", she said before whirling around playfully while Naruto just watched her dumbly, before he wiped the red hemoglobin down his chin….well, it was definitely her answer.

"But how…", he said while she smiled at herself proudly.

"Well I had this theory that…since shadow clone divides a user's soul, and seeing that when earlier you used it, it also divided my soul, I had this great idea. What if 'I' performed the jutsu but used your chakra?", she asked with a grin while Naruto's face lit up like a Christmas tree as he immediately understood what she was trying to tell him.

"Awesome Ayumi-chan! So you're telling me that by using my chakra, and YOU performing the jutsu…you could manifest your soul's physical form outside here, right?", he said with his eyes shining brightly while she nodded enthusiastically. So excited was he at the prospect of her somehow escaping the seal, that he immediately took her in a crushing hug.

"Oh Ayumi-chan, I'm so happy…you no longer need to remain confined in that seal", he said while rubbing his cheeks with her cheeks fondly, a large grin on his face while Ayumi blushed a bit before a perverted grin came across her face. Naruto's eyes snapped wide open when he felt Ayumi sensually running her hands over his chest and six-pack , but not overly muscled abs.

"Oh Naruto-kun…", she sensually whispered or more like it sounded like a moan making Naruto blush furiously as he felt her hands roaming over his body.

"A-Ayumi-chan….s-stop", he stuttered, his face flushed but it looked like that she had no intention to stop any time sooner.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha-Council Chambers<strong>

* * *

><p>"What's the meaning of this? Calling us at a time when we should be searching for Uchiha Sasuke?", said Homura sporting an impatient look on his face while Komura too looked to be annoyed. The chambers were filled with murmurs mainly from the civilian side whereas the shinobi clan's leaders sat in silence, silently wondering what did their leader want at this time, except for Shukaku who was outright sleeping on the table.<p>

The council chambers opened for them see the familiar face of their Hokage, but they weren't prepared for the next person that followed Hiruzen. All of their jaws dropped on the table, their eyes wide while their faces were pale, as if they had seen a ghost.

"K-Kushina-sama!"

* * *

><p><strong>So tell me how you feel about the chapter and keep those nice, cute little reviews coming. The next update…I don't know when would I able to, mainly because of the issue called life, but I'll try to update as fast as possible. And if you have any questions, don't hesitate to PM me ^_^ So until then..Ja ne!<strong>

**N6023**


	18. Taking A Step Further

**Hello there my faithful readers!^_^ So first of all, I'm really sorry for the late update and thanks for all the reviews. Due to several issues, I started writing this chapter four days ago, and due to unavoidable circumstances, I don't have access to my desktop or laptop and had to write this chapter on my HTC mobile and probably will have to do so in future chapters too. But don't worry, I'll make sure that updates are regular. So let's get on with the story-**

**Chapter-18-Taking A Step Further**

The council chambers opened for them to see the familiar face of their Hokage, but they weren't prepared for the next person that followed Hiruzen. All of their jaws dropped on the table, their eyes wide while their faces were pale, as if they had seen a ghost.

"K-Kushina-sama!", exclaimed a shocked civilian member, matching the face of every single person present there while Kushina just started to scan around the table. She smirked upon seeing the dried-up fish-like faces of Tsume & Hiashi and almost burst out laughing when she saw their older-than she remembered faces.

_'Hm... seems like skipping 13 years might be fun'_, she thought amusedly while on the outside she had an expressionless face.

"K-Kushina...", exclaimed Hiashi in shock, his usual emotionless facade no match for her ghostly appearance while Tsume too had her eyes as wide as they could get. This just wasn't possible, a person dead/unseen for 13 years just barges in like that with their leader, it was mind buggling.

"K-Kushina-chan", stuttered Tsume in a quivering voice while Danzo too couldn't believe his lone visible eye. With Shisui's Sharingan, he could indentify her special sky-blue chakra, she was Kushina alright.

_'How could she be alive? Even my most capable root sensors couldn't find her thirteen years ago'_, he thought before visibly composing himself on the outside while the others were trying to come to terms with the situation.

Meanwhile because of Kushina's unexpected appearance, nobody had noticed Sarutobi's hardened expression, an expression which had not been seen since Orochimaru fled from the village.

"As you all are seeing, it would seem Uzumaki Kushina is still alive. Any questions regarding where she was until now would be ignored", said the Hokage off handedly in his authoritative tone like it was an everyday occurrence that a supposed dead person comes back alive while an eerie silence followed his words before his statement settled in everybody's mind.

"We don't mind Uzumaki Kushina's return considering she's hailed as a great legendary kunoichi rivalling Senju Tsunade's status, but still it could be that in these past thirteen years her loyalties may have changed", said Danzo while staring at Hiruzen with a critical eye whereas Kushina narrowed her eyes at him.

"Are you implying that I'm a traitor Danzo?", she said in a threatning voice while the war-hawk felt a chill slide down his spine. He knew that if she was anywhere near her prime, he would lose to her in a one on one match even he went all out. If there was any effective counter against any bloodline, he knew that to be fuinjutsu which she had mastery over.

"I'm aware of that Shimura Danzo, but I trust Kushina fully", said Hiruzen in a calm tone while the shinobi clan heads nodded with him along with Hiashi, who was a good friend of Kushina. Meanwhile Danzo grunted in response.

"There is no trust in the world of shinobi Hiruzen, that's just delusionary idealism", he said in a gruff voice whereas Homura sighed, the war-hawk never left the chance to put in display his cold ideals. Though the two teammates and advisors of Hiruzen were strict and rarely agreed with him on any matter, they too wanted the welfare of their village and secretly agreed with his ideals.

"I'm tired of your useless views Danzo. Remember that I'm the Hokage here, so I'll decide how to run the village and not you", he said with an almost unvisible smirk while Danzo gripped the edges of the wooden table tightly in anger, him being reminded of not being the hokage was always a touchy subject.

"We're just glad to have you back Kushina-sama...we all trust you here", said one fat blob of civilian council member almost making Kushina cringe at him. All of them were interrupted from their gazing at Kushina in wonder by a cough from the Hokage.

"As much as I understand those unsual expressions on your face, we have other matters to discuss...like that of Uchiha Sasuke", said Hiruzen with a serious expression on his face before he sat on the chair while Kushina just opted to stand besides him before she greeted Tsume & Hiashi with a silent nod, but warm eyes. Hiashi nodded back ever so slightly while Tsume had a large smile on her face, a teary expression on her face.

"Indeed...and I'm curious as to why you ordered to stop searching for the last Uchiha", said Homura with a glare before Hiruzen glared back while spiking his chakra as a small amount of killer intent washed over the chamber.

"Watch your tone Homura... I'm the hokage here and you have no right to question my decisions", said the professor in a threatning tone while Kushina had a small smirk lurking across her lips.

_'Ace scored jiji'_, she thought while the rest of the council members had stupefied expressions on their faces. When did the old Hokage grew a backbone?

"Wha...", trailed Koharu's voice as she had a shocked expression on her face alongwith Homura while Danzo was looking at this changed Sarutobi with a critical eye.

_'Hiruzen...what happened to you...you've changed...those eyes... I see then... the supposed will of fire still burns brightly within you...let's see how far you can go '_, he thought with a hardened expression.

Meanwhile Tsume had a knowing expression on her face.

_'Hehe...typical as ever eh Kushi-chan...not even one day back and you've already changed our ol' hokage...kinda reminds me of Uzumaki Naruto. Hmm...I wonder if they're related somehow besides their name'_, she thought ironically.

"My final decision stands and we're to no longer search for Uchiha Sasuke from now on", said Sarutobi in his authoratative tone while the others gasped upon hearing him.

"You can't be serious Hokage-sama!", said one civilian member followed by many shouts of outrage by the other members while the shinobi side along with Homura, Koharu & Danzo remained silent, wondering about this unexpected event. Although they weren't fond of Sasuke as a person, but they knew his importance as the last Sharingan wielder in the village and didn't want to lose such a bloodline. Meanwhile Kushina had remained uncharacteristically quiet during this hassle.

_'I wonder what Naru-kun is doing right now?'_', she thought with a dreamy face while the council members were at each others neck as the volume in the chamber grew to uncomfortable levels.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!", yelled Hiruzen as a huge amount of killing intent washed across the room making the civilians paralyse in fear while the shinobi side were sweating bullets except only Kushina who seemed to be unaffected. Meanwhile, aside from trying to compose themselves, they were looking at Hiruzen yet again in awe. They didn't know what happened to their lovely grandfatherly hokage, but they knew not to mess with him anymore from now on.

" I'm the hokage here, I WILL take the decisions here and you are here ONLY as my advisors... nothing more, nothing less. The decision concerning Uchiha Sasuke is final and if anyone doesnot agree with me... SPEAK NOW OR REMAIN QUIET FOR THE REST OF YOUR FUCKING LIVES IN THIS CHAMBER", said Hiruzen in his chakra enhanced voice while Kushina was brought out of her thoughts by his outburst. Looking around, she was amused to find their funny paralysed faces before she sighed and shook her head.

_'Why did I even come here? I should be spending time with Naruto rather than be in this boring council ... I never liked coming in this chamber anyway... reminds me of the way of how they always tried to kill Naruto or exile him...these bastards'_, she thought with gritted teeth at the last part while her chakra spiked involuntarily making Hiruzen and other shinobi clan heads along with Danzo, Homura & Koharu look at her. Noticing several gazes upon her, she immediately composed herself while Hiruzen looked at her sympathetically. He knew how she must be feeling in the presence of these civilian idiots and knew he needed to finish this meeting fast or else there might be addition of several heavily injured patients to the hospital, which meant more paperwork.

"So with the matter of Uchiha Sasuke closed, lets move on to other matters... it has come to my information that Uchiha Sasuke & Uchiha Itachi are not the only Sharingan wielders remaining", said Sarutobi with a small smirk while everyone's eyes except Kushina's widened in shock while their mouths fell agape in an expression of impossibility. Meanwhile Danzo had other reasons to be shocked as he began to sweat bullets.

_'Does he... knows? But there's no way! Only Orochimaru knows about me possessing the Sharingan along with my most trusted root shinobi... But Orochimaru couldn't have possibly told him...'_, he thought in panic while outwardly didn't show his inner turmoil.

" You can't be serious Sarutobi...the Uchiha clan was massacred that night...everyone died except Uchiha Sasuke", said Homura while everyone else nodded with him.

" Believe it or not...she's right in this room", said the Hokage with a smirk while Kushina too was laughing inwardly...she always enjoyed some pranks here & there after all.

"She?", exclaimed Hiashi in surprise who himself couldn't keep his calm expression through all this tension while Shikaku along with other clan heads like Shibi, Chouza, Inoichi & Tsume also looked to be curious whereas Danzo breathed a sigh of relief, though he too was now curious as to who could be the one in this room. Scanning around, the only

kunoichi present there were Tsume, Homura & Kushina.

_'No... Tsume is from the Inuzuka clan...Koharu, I know too well ...she had a civilian background after all..could it be?...Kushina?...'_, he thought with wide eyes while Hiruzen looked at Danzo expectantly. He knew that his war-hawk rival was a very sharp customer & was the only one to be able to match upto him in the old days.

"Hiruzen... it can't be... Uzumaki Kushina?", he exclaimed in awaiting shock before Hiruzen slightly nodded towards Kushina to go ahead.

Everyone's eyes bugged out while their jaws dropped for the second time when they saw the same red eye structure of the famed Sharingan.

" Kushina... how can it be...you're an Uzumaki...", trailed Homura in shock while Kushina shook her head.

"I myself don't know... but the only explaination right now that I can give is that I'm a half Uchiha-half Uzumaki...that's all you really need to know", she said off handedly while the shinobi side could only nod quietly at this explaination, their mouth still open in shock.

" That's great Kushina-sama! And besides...since you've come now...maybe you could make Hokage-sama agree with us and help us kill that wretched demon who's been defiling your last name these past 13 years", said one civilian while murmurs of agreement started to increase on the civilian side whereas the clan leaders had agitated looks on their faces. Meanwhile Hiruzen groaned inwardly as he facepalmed himself, now he knew even Kami couldn't stop their impending doom.

_'May Kami have thy mercy'_, he thought while everyone discarded their demon extermination talk session when they heard a chilly low voice.

"Oh really... who's this demon anyway?", asked Kushina with a way-too sweet smile which reminded Shikaku of Yoshina, but a much scarier version. Being the ignorant fools they were, all of them chorused together,

"UZUMAKI NARUTO!", with so much pride in their voices that Hiruzen almost thought that it was for a noble & a social welfare cause. Meanwhile he chose to remain quiet and just observe the great shinobi war's deja vu.

"Ooh...Uzumaki Naruto huh? So he's a Uzumaki like me?", she said in a sing song voice, her voice getting chillier by the second as she clenched her fists tightly.

"No Kushina-sama...that demon could never be from your clan-", said one civilian before he was interrupted by Tsume.

"Shut up you idiot, you don't know anything about him!", said Tsume with an enraged expression while Kushina had a surpised look on her face whereas the other clan heads nodded with the Inuzuka matriarch.

" Kushina... don't listen to these fools, Naruto is really a sweet boy, I've met him a couple of times and I can honestly say that he's really kind and wouldn't harm anybody unecessarily. Just because of his jinchuriki status, doesn't mean that he's a demon by default", she said with pleading eyes. There was no way that she'd let her best friend join the demon hunting group too.

Meanwhile Kushina inwardly smiled warmly at her. Nobody except very few knew that she was pregnant back then. She was ashamed that she hid such a thing from her best friend Tsume, but neither could she tell the Inuzuka considering that Tsume was on a year long S-rank mission at that time. On the outside, Kushina just kept a calm facade before she nodded with her while Hiruzen was smiling warmly at Tsume.

"Kushina...", everyone turned their heads towards the source of the emotionless voice only to be surprised when they saw it was Hiashi.

"First of all... I'm glad that you're back. I missed you these thirteen years", he said with a small smile while everyone could only watch slack-jawed at the unusual display of emotions from the head of the Hyuuga clan. Meanwhile Kushina nodded at him and offered a small smile in return.

" Now... I will not lie to you nor do I need to. Uzumaki Naruto... at first I blamed him foolishly for all the destruction and for the loss of Minato. As the time passed, I began to see the boy for who he really was...just like you, always playing pranks...trying to make others laugh even when he failed desperately to do so...just like you", he said with a small smile while Kushina's eyebrows twitched at the jab. Meanwhile Inoichi shifted a bit away from the Hiashi with a horrified expression on his face.

"This man gives me the creeps...seriously, have you ever seen him laugh", said Inoichi in a quivering voice while Shikaku just sighed tiredly.

"Yeah... personally...all Hyuugas are a big long rusty drag", he said while Chouza sweatdropped at him.

"So I slowly became neutral towards him... but now...i know that that boy has something special that none of us have. He has the gift to change people for good", he continued while Kushina's eye's widened along with others, the fiery kunoichi's eyes almost watering at the fact that people were starting to finally recognise her son. She then remembered from Naruto's memories what he had said to Kurenai...more like said to himself, assured himself.

_"I don't know about the older generation...but I'll definitely change the views of mine & the upcoming generation"_

_'Naruto...you're already changing their views. And not just the younger ones... but the older ones too...I'm proud of you sochi'_, she thought with pride & love filling her heart for her son.

"He changed my elder daugher for good... and I believe it was because of him that Hinata's on her way of becoming the strongest Hyuuga ever. He's not a demon...not in a million years", said Hiashi with forceful emotion in his voice while the other clan heads nodded with him with a smile whereas Hiruzen had a small smile on his face along with Kushina.

"That's just nonsense! That demon's just a useless orphan and is nothing more than a Kyuubi reincarnation. And now he has transformed into just the replication of our beloved yondaime to fool us, it even possesses a strong bloodline...we cannot allow that spawn to get stronger or one day it will destroy the village. Don't you see... even his parents abandoned that good for nothing trash. I say-"

SHLURP!

The next thing that everyone saw was blood spraying and a giant sky blue ball of swirling chakra where the civilian's head was supposed to be. Their eyes widened when they saw Kushina crouched on the table in front of the civilian, her right hand extended to where the larger than normal Rasengan was spinning brightly & ferociously.

Most of the civilians downright puked at such a gruesome display while blood had covered Kushina's hands & forearms whereas some of the blood had sprayed on her face. She had a cold expression on her face, her icy violet eyes unnerving all those present in the chamber.

"Wh-What?...", trailed a shocked civilian, his face matching everyone present there. Even Hiruzen was shocked, he had never thought she would go to such extent as to kill someone.

"Under the sandaime's law considering Uzumaki Naruto's status, no one is to talk about 'it'. Breaking this law shall be punishable by death...right, Hokage-sama?", she said before turning her head towards the shocked hokage, her icy violet eyes daring him or anyone else to deny her action.

"K-Kushina! This is absurd... you can't just-"

"Koharu... she's right", said the old Hokage with a sigh. He knew what a mother's wrath could do and knew that a pissed Kushina was never a good thing, doesn't matter if you're a kage or a member of Akatsuki.

"Does anyone else has anything to say concerning Uzumaki Naruto?", she said with such a cold expression that it made even Hiashi jealous. An eerie silence followed her threatning question before she silently nodded to herself.

"Remember... if anyone badmouths Uzumaki Naruto or even harms a speck of him, they'll face my wrath... and if I'm not allowed to kill you, then the least I can do is make sure you lay on the hospital bed...limbless", she said before flipping over the table.

_'Such speed...even my trained eye couldn't keep track of her movement. And creating such a large Rasengan in a matter of a second is really something...even after all these years, her skills are top notch, rather she looks even more powerful than before and with the addition of Sharingan...I can only imagine the true extent of her strength & capabilities. I need to be wary of her'_, thought Danzo with a grim expression on his face.

"I believe my work is done...I'm outta here Hokage-sama", said Kushina with a cold expression as she waved over her shoulder before she started walking towards the door.

Meanwhile Tsume along with others were confused as to why she was being so protective of Naruto. For the past thirteen years, she wasn't in Konoha and didn't even know the boy personally. Then why would she possibly go as far as to kill someone for the little Uzumaki.

"Kushina... not that I'm complaining but why are you going so far to protect Naruto? You haven't even met him...", said Tsume while the shinobi clan heads and civilians alike listened in too. They were curious as to why Kushina was wasting her time over the village pariah, which were mainly the thoughts of the civilians.

Kushina continued to walk in silence as they saw her retreating back. Opening the door, just as she was about to exit, she stopped before answering over her shoulder without turning back.

"You don't need to know the reason...", she said while mainly glaring over her shoulder at the civilians.

"Just remember that I'm his guardian and would let NO ONE hurt him", she said in a threatning tone, showing her blood red Sharingan while the single tomoe spun to add to her threat. Meanwhile Hiruzen almost laughed when he heard several simultaneous audible gulps from the civilians.

"And also...if someone even dares of speaking about breeding concerning my sharingan...", she let the threat hanging loose before exiting the chambers while Hiruzen sighed inwardly to himself in relief while beads of sweat rolled down Homura's face because that was just the thing he was going to talk to the hokage.

Meanwhile Hiruzen was relieved because he was afraid of a possible council massacre tonight and felt a bit bad for the death of a civilian even though he deserved it. Meanwhile Tsume couldn't understand as to why Kushina was being so cold to them, matching the thoughts of other clan heads. She was the most brightest of kunoichi and always had a smile on her face, they weren't used to this type of Kushina. All of them were knocked out of their fear/confusion states by a knock on the door.

"Enter", ordered the Hokage as a chunin entered the chambers and kneeled before the him.

"Hokage-sama, as per your orders , all parties sent to search for Uchiha Sasuke have returned. Also, Raikage-sama & Mizukage-sama are waiting for you in the office", he reported while Hiruzen nodded.

"Good...inform all the jounins present in the village right now to gather at the rooftop of this tower tomorrow morning", he ordered while the chunin nodded but he remained still making Sarutobi raise his eyebrows.

"Is there anything else you want to tell me?", he said questioningly before the chunin answered hesitantly.

"Um...Hatake Kakashi is...um looks pissed hokage-sama...he wants to meet you ", said the chunin nervously while Sarutobi just sighed before he dismissed the chunin.

"I think you made a wise decision Hokage-sama...we don't need Uchiha Sasuke anymore...he was an arrogant brat anyways. With Kushina-sama on our side, we don't need anyone else", said a random civilian while the clan heads along with Sarutobi rolled their eyes. Great, first they lick the boy's boots and now they dump him like HE was the real demon, it was truly terrifying that how quickly they could change sides. Meanwhile Danzo was busy in his own thoughts as he planned for these unexpected turn of events. With return of Kushina and the activation of a doujutsu such as Rinnegan by Uzumaki Naruto, Konoha sure had great military additions.

**Konoha-Outside Hokage's Tower**

_'Phew...I've to stay hidden until jiji announces my arrival. Better stay hidden from the Anbu & others until then. Hm...I wonder where Naru-kun is?'_, she thought before chanelling chakra through her middle & index finger. Touching the chakra laced fingers on the Uzumaki seal that Naruto gave her, she closed her eyes in concentration as she traced Naruto's chakra.

"Ah...there he is", she exclaimed with a bright smile before moving at rocketing speeds towards her object of affection.

**Konoha-Naruto's Apartment-Roof**

"Ayumi-chan... what was Kaa-san's childhood like?", said Naruto as we find Ayumi and him on the a bit-slanted roof of his apartment. Naruto had his head on Ayumi's lap who was sitting cross-legged while he himself was laying down. She was lovingly running her soft fingers through his hair while her other hand was caressing his whisker marks. There was a soft cool breeze flowing while the full moon was shining upon the village.

"Hmm...let's see...well apart from the destruction of Ushiogakure, she had a fun childhood here in Konoha. The villagers didn't know that she was a jinchuriki and hence had a normal childhood", she said with a bit of sadness in her voice as she compared Kushina's childhood to Naruto's. Meanwhile Naruto felt happy that his mother found joy & happiness, something which he longed for.

_'Well atleast Kaa-san found happiness here...unlike me'_, he thought while sadness enguled him as he remembered his childhood. Meanwhile Ayumi bent down and laid her forehead on his, both of their eyes closed as they felt each others warmth and comforted each other silently.

"I wonder... how my childhood would've been if no one knew about the sealing", he said in a low voice while Ayumi's eyes watered up as she clenched her eyes shut. Sensing her stiffen up, he mentally slapped himself.

"But atleast I had you all the way...and I'm sure that you'll always remain with me, right?", he said with a smile while she giggled lightly when he started to wiped her tears.

"Of course you baka", she said in a whisper before kissing his cheek. Suddenly they sensed the familiar chakra of Kushina approaching.

"Kaa-san's coming!", he exclaimed with a bright smile when Ayumi suddenly poofed out making Naruto's head hit the roof.

"Ow...hey! What the hell was that for?", he said in irritated as he held his head.

_"Hehe...sorry Naruto-kun, I just don't want Kushi-chan to know about me getting out of the seal right now...I'll give her this surprise later...hehe, oh the endless possibilities for a great prank"_, she cackled evilly making Naruto sweatdrop at her.

_"And make sure that your so called great prank doesn't involve your perverted streak in any way"_, he said inwardly.

_"Hmph...what perverted streak?"_, she asked oh-so-innocently making his eyebrows twitch.

_"You almost raped me back there in the alley!"_, he almost screamed at her.

_"I was not trying to rape you, I was just helping you with your desires... and I would've succeeded if you hadn't pumped so little chakra in the seal...just as we were about to reach the fun part, your chakra ran out and I was dispelled! That's just so unfair!"_, she said with a pout while Naruto had a blush on his face as he remembered what she was about to do and almost suceeded in making him lose control.

"Kissed Ayumi-chan again?", he jumped upon hearing a familiar voice as his vision zoomed out to see Kushina standing in front of his embarrassed form.

But he was taken aback when he saw the difference between her eyes and her expression. She had a sweet smile on her face but her eyes held a bit of sadness in them.

Meanwhile, Kushina couldn't help but feel a pang in her chest at the thought of Naruto kissing someone else. She didn't know why, but she felt possessive of her Naruto, well Uzumaki women were said to be possessive. But she had no problem with Naruto having multiple lovers as long as she was one of them, but still they were mother & son, it just wasn't right. Flirting aside, anymore than that was wrong but she just couldn't control these new desires she had for him. There was an internal battle going on between her brain & heart, she was just so confused with these feelings. One instance she would feel like that they could really be something more than just mother & son, and at another her mental constraints would hold her back. Meanwhile Ayumi watched from inside of Naruto in sympathy, she knew about the inner turmoil that Kushina was currently going through and knew that only Naruto could help her sister-like figure tackle through it.

"Let's go to sleep Naru-kun...it's getting late. From tomorrow, I'll start you training", she said with a tired smile as she jumped off the roof and entered the apartment through his window while Naruto had a worried expression on his face.

_"Ayumi-chan, what is wrong with Kaa-san? Do you think something happened between her & jiji?"_, he asked in a concerned tone while Ayumi decided to keep the real reason from him for now. He himself hadn't sorted out his own feelings and they both needed to spend more time with each other to sort this out.

_"She's just feeling lonely Naru-kun...these mood swings do happen in the world of shinobi..."_, she said in a low tone.

_"Then what should I do? I don't want to see her so sad"_, he said in a quiet voice as he lowered his head.

_"Then show her that you love her...assure her that you'll never leave her, that you will always be there for her, that she's not alone...right now, you just don't know the depth of her love for you. I know that you love her too, but you need to show her. The combination of a mother's love for her child combined with these new romantic feelings she has for you may just be the strongest form of love that anyone can have for someone"_, she paused while Naruto too was deep in thought before she continued.

_"Sometimes you would feel lonely & sad and sometimes she would. In these times you guys would have to comfort each other, you would need to show each other that you are loved very much by the other, that's how human emotions work Naruto-kun. Tonight is the first night when you two would sleep with each other...just hold her tight...talk to her. I know that you too have feelings for her...and tonight or some other day you two would have to solve this issue. It's been only one day, but the more you let this issue hanging, the tension between you two would grow to unbearable levels leading to only more emotional turmoil and sadness"_, she finished hoping that her words helped him clear his thoughts.

_"I understand Ayumi-chan...I'll try to do something. I'm not sure how these things are done, but for Kaa-san I'll try nevertheless"_, he said inwardly with determination shining in his eyes as he jumped over the roof and sped towards his front door.

_'That's all you need Naruto...a push is all you guys need and things would slide between you two very soon'_, thought Ayumi with a smile.

Standing in front of his door, he took a deep breath before unlocking it and entered his home.

All he found was a dark room which was lightly lit by the full moon as if purifying the room. His apartment was a one room structure which consisted of a short corridor inside in front of his entrance door. Following which was a room, spacious enough for three-four persons to move around comfortably. Connecting to this was a bathroom and a kitchen.

So the first thing he saw after crossing through the corridor was Kushina lying on the bed wearing a loose silky gown, indicated by the loose straps of said garment over her milk-creamy shoulders. Her back was facing him as she laid on her sides, looking out through the open window from where the room was inhaling the night's comfortable cool breeze. Through the silky gown, he could almost see her shapely legs and the way the moonlight was falling upon her hour-glass form made her look like a glowing goddess to him. It was the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

_'.god...how can anyone look so beautiful'_, he thought as he tried to burn this sight into his mind.

Meanwhile, Kushina wasn't asleep & was lost in her own thoughts too much to notice Naruto enter the apartment. And her mood was getting worse by every second when Naruto didn't enter the apartment.

_'I wonder what he's doing? Hmph...probably making out again with that Ayumi-baka. I wonder if he even looks at me like a woman aside from me being his mother. No he does notice me...he did blush from time to time as I saw him staring at me. I really hope that we can become something more Naru-kun...if not, then still I would never stop loving you. Hehe...it has only been one day and I can say that I wouldn't be able to live without you Naru-kun. I almost lost you yesterday... and I will not let that happen ever again'_, she thought with determination as she gazed outside the window while rolling strands of her hair around her finger.

She almost jumped out of her place when she heard a familiar voice call her.

"Kaa-san?"

Turning her head, she saw Naruto standing just in front of the side-bed.

"N-Naru-kun!", she stuttered in surprise while Naruto smiled sheepishly.

He had apparently removed his shinobi attire and was in his pajama & a loose sky-blue shirt. Remembering from his memories, she knew that those were chakra clothes and hence adjusted to one's size when they applied chakra to it. She blushed at seeing him smiling at her, he looked so cute in civilian clothes.

"Sorry to scare you Kaa-san...I was just checking if you were asleep or not", he said apologetically.

"What took you so long?", she asked with a hint of anger in her voice which Naruto immediately picked.

"I was just talking with Ayumi-chan", he answered in a sincere tone while Kushina just huffed and turned sideways.

"Yeah...probably kissing her again", she mumbled to herself which he heard due to his sensitive hearing.

"Are you jealous Kaa-san? Do you want me kiss you too?", he asked with a smirk while faking surprise in his voice.

"W-What makes you think like that dattebane!", she said frantically after jerking her head, her face red like a tomato making him burst in laughter further adding to her embarrassment.

"Look at you...AHAHAHAHA!...y-your face is just like a tomato", he said after controlling his laughter making her extremely embarrassed as she just huffed again and turned outside of the window. She didn't know why she was acting like this, but whenever she was in presence of Naruto, he would make her feel like a teenager all over again.

Though she blushed furiously when she felt his arms snake around her slim waist and his chest rubbing against her back.

"Can I sleep with you Kaa-san?", he asked her with a smile making her blush at the double meaning of those words.

"O-Ofcourse...", she stuttered as she took a deep beath to control her racing heart and shifted sideways to give him more space. His touch always sent electric sensations through her spine, and it was becoming difficult to control herself with more time they spent with each other. Meanwhile, her heart raced further when she felt his hot breath on her back neck.

"You're so beautiful Kaa-san", he said out of nowhere making her speechless. What happened to him?

"N-Naru-kun...?", she trailed in a stunned voice but could feel her heart swell with happiness & pride.

"You are very beautiful", he repeated in a whisper, his lips touching her soft ears, almost making her moan while he tightened his grip around her waist. Meanwhile Ayumi was smiling at the scene going on with pride.

_'That's my Naruto-kun. Go catch her like the foxy-kun you are'_, she thought as she pumped her fist in her palm.

Meanwhile Kushina felt like she was on cloud nine, in his arms she felt complete like never before. He felt so warm, she felt like never wanting to let him go.

"What's troubling you so much Kaa-san?", he asked in a worried tone as he lovingly placed a light kiss on her back neck making sparks fly through her body, as she struggled to prevent herself from ravishing him right then. Though her eyes widened when she realised his question.

"N-Nothing N-Naru-kun...", she stuttered as her hand involuntary rubbed Naruto's forearm holding her waist, which in turn made him blush a bit as he felt her warm hands on his skin.

_'Her touch feels so good'_, an involuntary thought passed his mind before he answered her.

"Then why do you blush everytime I touch you...like right now", he said as he held her closer to him, clouding her mind with these sensations as he placed small kisses on her back neck. All the while it was getting really difficult for Kushina to control her urges as she fought against her raging hormones. Her breathing was getting heavier while she could feel her lower regions getting hot. She couldn't believe how much effect just his touch had on her body.

"N-Naru-kun...s-stop", she said, almost moaned in a quivering voice while Naruto increased his sensual kisses, and started placing soft kisses on her shoulder.

"I will...but when you tell me why do you look so troubled", he said all the while kissing her soft skin of her shoulder making a moan escape her lips.

_'It's not like I really want you to stop'_, her inner voice said making her blush. But despite her enjoying his ministrations on her, she decided that it was best to tell him now. No need to keep anything from him, besides she could bet that he definitely knew of her feelings towards him.

"I...ah", she moaned when he bit the soft skin of her shoulder lightly, which in turn itself made him blush on hearing her erotic moans. He himself was barely controlling himself but he needed her to admit herself. Stopping his kisses, he signalled her to speak while she took several deep breaths to control her hormones.

"I...have f-feelings for you Naru-kun...I don't know what to do...I tried but couldn't help but feel attracted towards you...I understand though if you despise me for it", she said in a low quivering voice, almost on the verge of tears.

Naruto sighed in what he could call true happiness which he had never felt before, happiness which had instantly erupted like a volcano when he heard those words.

"I'm so happy Kaa-san...", he whispered in her hear as he held her tight to him.

"To tell you the truth, I too feel the same way towards you...but Ayumi-chan was there for me to help when I was confused. And I'm here to help you...even if it's about me", he said while Kushina's eyes were as wide as they could get. Though regarding the events in the past few hours, she had a hunch that he too felt the same way towards her, but for that to happen in reality was a whole different experience. A bright smile formed on her face as she instantly turned around surprising him before taking him in a bone crushing hug.

"I'm so happy!", she said, almost squealing in delight as she buried his head in her ample bosom, rather her cleavage making him blush up a storm.

_'Wow...this really is heaven...now I know why Kakashi-sensei, Itachi-sensei & jiji are so preverted...it feels so good'_, he thought with a peaceful smile before slowing drifting off to sleep.

Meanwhile Kushina had a content smile on her face but blinked when she felt his breathing becoming even and heard light sounds of snoring.

Slowly pulling her head back, she saw Naruto's sleeping face and resisted the urge to squeal 'Kawai'. Clearing his bangs, she kissed his forehead before putting his head back in her bosom as she completely hugged his warm form lovingly. Putting her arms around his neck, she softly ran her fingers through his hair before closing her eyes with a dreamy sigh.

"Sweet dreams Naru-kun", she whispered before a giggle escaped her lips when she felt him nuzzle his face into her breasts, as if responding to her.

**Timeskip: Next Day-5 AM: Konoha: Training Ground 44 (Forest of Death)**

"Kaa-san _'yawn'_...why are we training so early?", he asked while rubbing his eyes. Right now, both he & Kushina were standing several metres apart from each other in a clearing which ironically matched the one where he had activated the Rinnegan that day. Both of them were wearing their usual shinobi wear.

Usually, he would be very excited about training but he never was a morning person and besides, he had the best sleep of his life. Although according to a pervert, it would be obvious considering the position in which he slept. Meanwhile Kushina had a real serious expression on her face which Ayumi knew that Naruto better take this seriously or else he would suffer...painfully.

"Naruto...", she said gaining his attention at the fact that she didn't use the usual way she uses to address him.

"Through your memories I've seen that besides the Rinnegan...your normal eye has been poorly trained to keep up with shinobi using high speeds", she said in a serious tone while Naruto also nodded with a serious expression.

"To start your training with, we'll just spar for now...and I'll repeat Kakashi's words, come at me with intent to kill or I wouldn't hold back my strength. But in case of speed, to start with I'll use only thirty percent of my full speed", she said as she shifted into her fighting stance.

"What! Only thirty percent, c'mon... why are you holding back so much?", he said in disbelief before Kushina answered with a smirk.

"We'll see, if you're able to match me then I'll simply move more fast. And remember...no doujutsu", she said as she got ready while Naruto settled into his fighting stance with a confident smirk.

_"Be careful Naruto-kun...she wouldn't hold back"_, warned Ayumi.

_"I would...but she's only using thirty percent...I mean c'mon, thirty? I'm not that bad"_, he said to her making her sigh.

_'It's not that you're bad Naruto-kun...it's just that Kushi-chan's level is high and this time you'll be facing someone stronger than Orochimaru'_, she thought.

"Alright...ready?", asked Kushina before he nodded.

"Let's start then", she said before she simply completely blurred out of his vision making his eyes widen to stunned proportions. He didn't even had time to lift a finger before he felt an extremely high pressure on his stomach before he was launched back at rocketing speeds. He crashed painfully through several trees before slamming on the trunk of a larger tree, creating a large crater before he fell on the ground on his shoulder, inducing some dust.

His world was spinning, what the hell had even happened? He didn't even know when had she hit him...thirty percent speed? This was ridiculous...he was feeling like a mob had been beating him constantly for an hour with him being defenseless.

The pain of that blow...he can't even describe it, it's beyond excruciating. Shakily getting up on his knees, his hands were on the ground while his eyes were wide in pain, his pupil vibrating while his brain was not able to resist such damage...such pain. Gritting his teeth, he held his stomach before he started coughing blood voilently with a mix of saliva.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!", he screamed in agony, no longer able to contain this unbearable pain. It felt like his stomach was crushed, he could feel it being healed by youki and his own special chakra, but the pain was intolerable.

"This...is what an S-rank shinobi is Naruto, this is how much strong your so called old hokage is, this is how much strong each member of Akatsuki would be...and some of them maybe stronger even than me. Get up Naruto...because your enemies wouldn't wait for Ayumi to heal you", said Kushina with a grim expression after landing several metres away from Naruto.

**So tell if you liked the chapter. And please keep reviewing cause they really motivate me in writing future chapters ^_^**

**And also, I would like for you guys to suggest a cool chakra katana for Kushina. For Naruto, I've already decided. So it would be appreciated if I could get your opinions. So until next time, take care & Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	19. Consequences of Hardcore Training

**So hello guys, here's the ninteenth chapter and sorry for the late update, sometimes it really gets a pain in the ass to type on my cell phone.**

**Some of you guys have been complaining that in the several past chapters, this fic had become a NaruKushi centric, so I apologise to those readers. I think I could've given time to other girls while doing NaruKushi & develop their relation with Naruto side by side, which I'll try to do that from now on. Hope you enjoy the future chapters, unlike the past few chapters. And also, if some of you readers haven't read the one shot-'Mom's Red Hair', which I released a few days ago, then go check it out. ^_^**

**So with nothing else to say, let's get on with the fic-**

**Chapter-19-Consequences of Hardcore Training**

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!", he screamed in agony, no longer able to contain this unbearable pain. It felt like his stomach was crushed, he could feel it being healed by youki and his own special chakra, but the pain was intolerable.

"This...is what an S-rank shinobi is Naruto, this is how much strong your so called old hokage is, this is how much strong each member of Akatsuki would be...and some of them maybe stronger even than me. Get up Naruto...because your enemies wouldn't wait for Ayumi to heal you", said Kushina with a grim expression after landing several metres away from Naruto.

Looking up, blood was oozing down his mouth while he was holding his stomach with both hands, he looked at her with determination in his eyes before he started to cough voilently. Meanwhile Kushina was looking at him with impassive eyes but on the inside, she was worried sick for her son.

_'Maybe I'm going too far...no, he needs this...the Akatsuki wouldn't hold back against him...morever Ayumi would probably heal him in a day at maximum...this training is important for improving his taijutsu skills and develop his sixth perception experience'_, she thought with a hardened resolve.

"Get up Naruto", she said in a cold tone while Naruto continued to writhe in pain, but now it was much lesser than before, thanks to Ayumi's chakra working overtime.

_"Naruto-kun...how are you feeling right now?"_, she asked in a concerned tone while Naruto continued to pant as he stood up, his knees shaking while both of his hands were still holding his stomach.

_'So this is what I'll be facing soon...even with my Rinnegan, Kaa-san can beat me in about five seconds flat...no matter, I'll keep coming at her...harder with each passing second'_, he thought with determination overflowing his body as he wiped the blood off his lips & jaw.

_"Heh! Never felt better Ayumi-chan"_, he said while grinning inwardly at hermaking her chuckle a bit, but still she was worried. She knew Naruto would be getting some very heavy injuries in this taijutsu training session and that she would have to strain her ass to even make him remain standing. Ever since the seal had weakened, she could pump much more of her chakra and hence his healing rates had been enhanced tremendously.

"Concentrate Naruto...watch my every movement...even the slight twitch of my muscle...you have enhanced senses, it's time to use them. Strain your ears...your EYES, feel the environment around you...know your environment...let me warn you, I may be holding back my speed, but I won't hold back my strength. This time it was your stomach, next time it maybe your bones breaking", she said, her violet eyes cold just like her voice making Naruto gulp as he clenched his fists in concentration & anxiety, beats of sweat rolling down his forehead. He winced when he felt his stomach still hurting, but he had developed a high pain tolerance due to several years of abuse.

Closing his eyes, he took several deep breaths as he concentrated on his surroundings, straing his senses to the max as he could hear even the slightest of morning sounds, the rustling of leaves, the light chirping of birds, but he knew that this excercise was mainly for his eyes. Snapping open his eyes, he got into his fighting stance before nodding towards Kushina who was silently observing him, all the while mentally cheering him on and praying to Kami that he wouldn't get hurt...much.

Without saying anything, she again blurred from his vision while Naruto concentrated fully on his surroundings. Straining both his eyes and ears to the maximum, his feet shuffling slightly, waiting for her...the more longer she was taking, the more anxious he was getting with each passing second.

**Timeskip: Thirty Minutes Later**

_'So this is how Kaa-san trains...kinda understand why Itachi-sensei became an Anbu caption when he was only thirteen years old'_, thought Naruto as we find him barely standing, his knees shaking whereas almost all of his face was covered in blood, while he was panting heavily, his breathing ragged. His upper torso had been torn almost completely showing his lean & muscular upper body which had several bruises. His trenchcoat no longer present, he was holding his stomach in pain which had beared most of her extremely painful blows. His left arm was hanging limply by his side, courtesy of Kushina's punch connecting with his shoulder which had made that area go numb, the only reason his bone hadn't broken in that area was probably because of his muscles absorping the shock of the blow. His whole dustly body was sweating profusely while he fell on his knees in exhaustion. People called him stamina freak, what about his mother...though he was probably tired because of all those mind-buggling blows.

Around him, we find the forest, especially the trees, either branchless or barkless. There were several deep craters on the ground, in one of which was the heavily injured crouching form of Naruto.

On the opposite side several metres away from him, we find Kushina standing seemingly completely unharmed, her appearance like she didn't even break a drop of sweat.

Her eyes had a soft look in them, they looked like they were almost about to burst in tears, it was like her heart was being stabbed every time she landed a hit on him, she was his mother after all. Seeing him in such condition and the fact that it was because of her made her want to just commit senpukku.

_'This is tougher than I expected...I can't stand to see him get hurt. But only Naru-kun can withstand this kind of training...any other normal person would have died by now'_, she thought with pained eyes as she immediately shook her head of those thoughts. No, she had to be strong, for him. It would be better if he endures pain now...rather than later when it comes to fight to the death against bigger threats.

"That would be enough for today Naru-kun", she said in a much softer voice, her way of addressing him reverting back as she sped to his injured form.

"Heh...I won the bet Ayumi-chan...I'm still conscious", he said with a smile as he tried to wipe the blood off his face, before suddenly his eyes rolled into the back of his head as he slipped into unconsciousness. Just as he was about to lick the dirt, Kushina blurred out of nowhere before grabbing his prone form gently with a lone tear escaping her eyes.

Without saying anything and taking hold of him bridal style, she vanished in a swirl of water along with Naruto.

**Timeskip: Naruto's Apartment: Four Hours Later**

Groggily openening his eyes, the first thing he felt was that his head was buried in something warm & soft. Adjusting his eyes to the light, probably piercing through the windows, things slowly came back to his mind about what had happened earlier.

_'Oh yeah...I was beaten like a rag doll'_, he thought gloomily as he now opened his eyes to take in his surroundings. He was lying on a bed, and the only thing he could see was the valley of heavens making him blush profusely when he recognised just whose voluptous breasts his face was pressed in.

"Kaa-san?", he mumbled softly as he noticed her holding him tightly to her, a few tear stains on her face, while her thighs were kind of locked around his waist. He immediately understood what had happened, he had seen her cold expression during the training sometimes crack when he was hit rather hard, well...every hit was hard.

_'It was hurting her to hit me like that...'_, he thought with a sad smile when he noticed that his stomach was completey bandaged while his left arm was also bandaged into a casket. His eyes widened when he noticed he was in civilian clothes, his skin smooth instead of being dusty & sweaty.

_'Oh Kami...did she give me a bath'_, he thought with a heavy blush as he quietly & carefully got out of her hold so as to not wake her up, with each movement pain coarsing through his body as he grit his teeth.

Finally out of the bed, he thought of what to do as he finally reviewed the events that he had experienced these past days.

_'My life sure is going to change with Kaa-san coming back...hehe...I wonder about the faces of Kakashi-sensei, Itachi-sensei, Kurenai-chan, Anko-chan and...oh shit! I still have to see Yugi-chan & Tsume-chan, and...oh man, Kin-chan, Temari & maybe...Ino too, maybe she really has changed. And who are fighting who in the finals anyway? And holy fuck...Hinata-chan! I am an idiot...I was just too absorbed in my own world that I forgot about everybody else'_, he thought as he let out a frustrated sigh...,there was so much he had to do today. Washing his face, he noticed that all the bruises on his face & skin had healed completely making him look as fresh as new, well...except his noticeable left bandaged arm. He left a note for the sleeping form of Kushina before quietly exiting his apartment.

**Konoha: Red Light District**

"Aah...finally some fresh air", he said to himself with a bright smile as he started to to jump through the roofs, intent on meeting his friends.

_'But first I gotta fill myself...I'm hungry...Next stop...Ichiraku ramen!'_, he thought with a cheerful smile as he increased his speed, ocassionally wincing when he felt pain because of his stomach & shoulder injuries.

**Konoha:Ichiraku's Ramen**

"I'm back for some ramen old man!", said Naruto with a grin as he entered through the curtains.

"N-Naruto-kun?"

He eyes snapped open when he heard that same soft & angelic voice which he loved so much.

"Hinata-chan?", he exclaimed in surprise before a blush framed his face when he noticed how cute she looked. She was dressed in her dark blue training clothes while her violet hair was tied back, two bangs framing her heart shaped face accentuating her cuteness. A single noodle was trapped between her soft lips while her lips were covered by what seemed to be the soup part of ramen, they looked so enticing that he just wanted to jump her & taste her lips with a mix of that delicious soup. Her milk creamy skin was as unblemished as ever.

Hinata had an absolutely ecstatic expression on her face when she saw him standing there, the same mesmerising goofy grin on his face.

"Naruto-kun!", she exclaimed in joy before immediately jumping off the stool and taking him in a hug, the brightest smile on her face as she fondly hugged him while Naruto had a blush on his face along with a surprised expression. When did she became this forward?

Releasing him from the hug, Naruto blushed when he saw an angelic smile on her face, her eyes shining brightly with unexplainable happiness as if she had founded her most loved treasure.

"Hinata-chan...you look beautiful", he said with a smile making her blush darkly as she averted her eyes away from him.

"Th-Thank you", she said meekly with a sweet smile. Though her blush increased tenfolds when he wiped her lips, a blush itself on his face. But when she noticed his bandaged arm, a look of horror crossed her face.

"W-What happened to you?", she asked with so much concern that it made Naruto feel all warm inside, like he was the most important person in the world.

"Ah nothing Hinata-chan...just training you know", he said with a smile as he sat down on the stool while Hinata too took her place, a frown on her beautiful face.

"What kind of training does Kakashi-sensei give anyway? What's the use if you get that much injured?", she said with a frown while Naruto watched her with his mouth open, the girl didn't even stutter once!

_'I guess getting acceptance & recognition from her family gave her the boost & confidence she needed...morever, beating her sister...that arrogant little brat, must have opened her up a bit'_, he thought with a smile while he watched her with fondness. Meanwhile, Hinata noticed him staring and blushed as her heart started to beat faster.

_'Why is he staring?'_, she thought nervously with a blush as she fiddled in her seat, and thankfully Teuchi came to her rescue.

"Well, if it isn't my favourite customer", he said with a laugh while Naruto smiled back at him warmly.

"It's nice to see you again oji-san...where's Ayami-nee-chan anyway?", asked Naruto while Hinata stared at him with a fond smile on her face this time.

"She's gone out shopping...you know the ladies stuff", he said before grumbling about the present youth being too lazy while Naruto nodded, a bit sad that he didn't get to meet his nee-chan.

"The usual then I presume Naruto?", he asked his favourite customer while Naruto nodded as he stared impassively at the counter.

_'Now that I remember...Sasuke too was said to have gone missing...though the condition in which I left him in, he couldn't have possibly left on his own...and I can say that it was Orochimaru who had kidnapped him. But I have a feeling that the teme would be much stronger when the next time we meet'_, he thought while Hinata looked at him worried as she finished her pork ramen. Naruto had heard some shinobi talking on their way back from the search last night, and frankly he wasn't that surprised.

"Naruto-kun...what's wrong?", she asked while nudging him on the shoulder, making him snap out of his trance.

"Huh...oh nothing's wrong...but you tell me, you beat that little brat of your sister in a spar and stood up your father in a match...I mean, that was awesome Hinata-chan!", he said as she blushed her famed shade of Hinata red colour_._

"It was all thanks to you Naruto-kun", she said in a low tone while Naruto just sighed.

"You know Hinata-chan...it's good to be modest & all, but sometimes...you should take the credit for something that you strained your ass to do, it instills pride & self-confidence in you", he said in his lecture tone. Looking back at her, he found her taking notes furiously in a beautiful diary while nodding to herself in a comical manner. The title of the diary was: 'Naruto-kun: The Insightful Philosopher'.

"...instills pride...& confidence. Hm, no...the 'ass' word should be censored", she said to herself making his eyebrows twitch in irritation as well as bewilderment.

"Anything else Naruto-kun?", she asked innocently.

"That...who do you think I am, Iruka-sensei?", he said, "and what's with this diary...give me that!"

"Hey! T-That's not fair...N-Naruto-kun...give it back...it's personal", she whined while he just opened it and started going through it's pages. It contained everything that he had said either to motivate himself or someone else, also containing about what he had said to her during the preliminaries in the ice dome. The line where he had said that he would never leave her alone was highlighted and was surrounded by several red hearts making him blush before he closed the book and gave it back to her pouting form. Coughing to regain his composure, he decided to change the subject also noticing that the diary had vanished back into thin air miraculously.

"So...how's your training going?", he asked while Teuchi set the filled bowl in front of him and went back to give them some privacy.

"It's fine...father has increased my training ever since the activation of my second Byakugan and Kurenai-sensei too isn't lacking in her training schedules", she said while he nodded as he slowly ate his bowl, savouring the ramen's taste, much to her astonishment.

"Hinata-chan...", he said with a serious expression on his face while she looked at him.

"Do you know about me being under the CRA act?", he said while she just nodded with a sad smile on her face.

"Hai...father told me so", she said while he just nodded, not all that surprised.

"Do you mind?", he said with a blush while she too blushed at the hidden meaning of that question.

_'C'mon Hinata...this is it, you have to tell him'_, she thought before hardening her resolve.

"N-Naruto-kun...I..."

"I know Hinata and I think that you know my answer too...but I want to develop things between us before we get to that part", he said with a smile, not looking at her while she nodded at him, a bright smile itself on her face with a mix of cute blush.

"So...do you know the matches that would take place in the finals, and possibly my match too", he said while she nodded as she remembered that he hadn't attended the day before for their matches, but she didn't want to pry into his personal life so soon.

"The first one is me against Neji-nii-san against that puppet user Kankurou", she said a bit nervously making his eyes widen.

"That's great!", he said with a bright smile making her look at him in surprise.

"Now you can finally teach that arrogant idiot a lesson...I know that you'll wipe the floor with him", he said with faith in his eyes making her feel like she was at top of the world.

"Y-You really think so?", she said making him sweatdrop.

"Hinata-chan...you stood upto your father in a match...you'll absolutely castrate your so-called 'Neji-nii-san's' ego...and with a little more training, he would stand absolutely no chance against you. And don't worry about that clown...you just target his clown paint and he'll run like a pussy", he said with a smirk while she started giggling, feeling a lot more confident than before. Even though she knew that now she could stand upto her cousin, there was still a small sliver of doubt in her mind.

"So, what about the other matches?", he asked in curiosity.

"Oh...the second match will be you against Kiba against Gaara", she said in a bit of a worried tone while he just nodded and signalled her to continue.

"The thirdmatch will be Shino-kun against Temari-chan against Lee-san...the fourth would be Shikamaru-san against Kin-chan against Tenten-san", she said with a serious expression while Naruto nodded, deep in thought.

_'Seems like I'll finally squaring off against Gaara...that should be interesting'_, he thought excitedly. But then he remembered that he hadn't heard Ayumi's voice ever since he had woken up.

_"Hey Ayumi-chan?"_, he said inwardly, getting no response when he heard light sounds of snoring making him chuckle inwardly.

_'Lazy vixen'_, he thought in amusement when he heard Hinata's alarmed voice.

"Oh no...I have my training session with father in a few minutes...Naruto-kun, I have to go!", she said frantically before getting off the stool while he just blinked before grabbing her by her wrist making her look back at him in surprise, a dark blush on her face as she felt his skin touching hers.

Quickly leaning forward, he kissed her cheek before placing the money on the counter and exiting the stand with a bright smile on his face.

"Take care Hinata-chan...I'm proud of you!", he yelled back with a grin while Hinata just kept staring at nothing, a dark blush on her face as she carressed her cheek where he had kissed her. A small smile slowly turned into a full blown one before exiting the stand with a whole lot of happiness & confidence than before, one last thought on her determined mind before she took off for the Hyuuga clan's estates.

_'I'm gonna kick father's ass today'_

**Konoha's Streets**

"Hm...what should I do now?", he said to himself while walking, before noticing that he was being glared at by almost all of the people that the street was filled with. Spiking his chakra while leaking some killer intent, he growled.

"You want something?"

Looking around, he saw that his killer intent had worked as most of the civilians had almost soiled their pants, while some of the braver ones were still standing with angry expressions on their faces.

"First you destroy our village & kill our yondaime...and now you dare defile his name by transforming into him!", he said, also motivating/angering the other passer-by's who also started to whisper among themselves while Naruto kept his calm, his eyes cold while his expression was blank.

_'This is bad...I'm already heavily injured and if they attack now...it would be trouble for me. Seems like me changing into tou-san due to the Rinnegan has further angered them...'_, he thought before stepping forward, also noticing that he was almost surrounded while the people had angry expressions on their faces.

"What do you say guys...we've already tolerated his presence long enough but him defiling yondaime is one thing that can't be allowed...WHAT DO YOU SAY THAT WE FINISH HIM ONCE & FOR ALL!", another random civilian yelled, his speech working as the movitational factor as slowly people started to surround Naruto. Their hands full with sticks, knives, pebbles, grabbing whatever they could find then, their faces full of hatred & anger for one person in front of them.

"Attack me if you will...but mind you that this time I'll not run away...but fight you back", said Naruto, his voice cold sending chills down some of the civilians spine.

"YOU SEE! HE'S EVEN STARTED TO THREATEN US!", yelled another person while Naruto just sighed.

"And how will you fight us demon, you're already injured", said one civilian with a smirk while others too had wicked grin on their faces.

"Your funeral then", he said in a cold & calm voice, before all the people started to run towards him with a collective shout. Meanwhile Naruto just kept his eyes closed as he calmly removed the casket string over his shoulder. He knew that using his left arm would send jolts of pain through his body, but he had to protect himself.

_'I hope no one dies by this...or else that fucking council's gonna be on my ass'_, he thought as he lifted his right arm sideways, towards the approaching villagers while slowly lifting his left arm (sideways). He was feeling immense pain right now seeing as the shoulder muscle injury hadn't healed till now. Gritting his teeth while bearing the pain in his right shoulder, both of his arms were facing the approaching villagers who were about just a metre away from him. His eyes closed as he channeled as much chakra he could into this attack. His senses could pick several jounins approaching the area...must be the work of jiji.

Snapping open his eyes, he yelled.

**"SHINRA TENSEI!**"

The effects were instantaneous as all the fast approaching villagers were thrown in the opposite directions with a tremendous force, their speeds of recoiling so great that it seemed like a tornado had hit the area. Wind along with dust picked up like a raging maelstrom while almost all the surrounding shops & other buildings were destroyed. Glasses broken, poles & trees uprooted, furniture destroyed. Now coming onto the organic matter, bones were broken, muscles were torn, limbs were twisted while some of the civilians were heavily damaged, almost looking like they were dead. A large crater had formed in the area while you could see the comical scenes of the injured & fucked up unconscious villagers. Some were hanging on the electrical transmission wires like clothes on a hanger, some were embedded into the wall upside down like some ancient live art painting with red colour being the dominant one, someone's face was buried in other's crotch, while someone's crotch was was buried in other's mouth (ouch!). All in all it looked like a ghost area, with a good scope for paintings & opening a museum for the precious demon hunters.

One of the civilian whose head had hit a wall was mumbling to himself.

"Hehe...'hiccup'...I looooove demonssss"

Meanwhile, in the centre was one heavily panting form of Naruto.

"Damn...never knew...I could do that...and with using...only about half...of my chakra", he said to himself while panting as he held his shoulder, before putting his arm back on the bandage support, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead due to overexertion.

Walking down the dirt road/crater, his eyes rolled back in what seemed to be exhaustion. Expecting to hit the dry dirt, he was surprised when he felt himself being embraced by someone, and by the softness of her hands as well as her body, he could tell that the one holding him was a female.

"That was really something Naruto-kun...you always seem to amaze me", he heard a soft voice.

"Is he...alright Yugao-chan?", he heard someone speak frantically while panting.

"Hai...he would be fine as long as we are here", he heard Yugao speaking softly before drifting into unconsciousness due to exhaustion.

**Timeskip: 30 minutes later: Konoha's Training Ground-7**

"Ugh...", he groaned as he lazily opened his eyes for second time in a day, readjusting to the bright sunlight as he felt his scalp being caressed gently.

"Yugao-chan! Come here...he's awaking!", he heard someone speak excitedly.

_'There are very few people who would be excited to see me...and this I don't recognise...could it be?'_, he thought, his eyes still closed as he tried to get up but the one holding him kept her grip firm on his chest.

"Don't exhaust yourself like that Naruto-kun...just rest", he heard her say, and couldn't deny that his head was in a comfortable position. Though slowly opening his eyes, his face paled when he saw the one known as Inuzuka Hana, one of the ice-queen prodigies.

"H-Hana-san...", he stuttered as he tried to get up but grit his teeth in pain as the strain of his effort was put on his abs.

"Naruto-kun...please don't strain yourself", said Hana in a worried tone while he blushed when he noticed her beautiful face.

_'Control yourself you idiot...ofcourse she would be beautiful...they are named ice queens for a reason. I should just get the hell outta here'_, he thought nervously as he used a quick shunshin surprising Hana & Yugao and appearing just a little away from them because of lack of enough chakra.

"I...s-sorry...to d-disturb you", he said while panting, his right holding his stomach, his condition looking worse by the second while Hana & Yugao looked at him with worry, moisture in their eyes for seeing him such condition.

"G...'cough'G-Goodbye", he said to them while holding his stomach as he turned to leave. Just after taking few steps, he started to cough violently as he fell on his knees, coughing blood while trying to covering his mouth with his hand.

_'Shit! I shouldn't have used Shinra Tensei on such a scale so soon...it's taking a toll on my coils as well as my body...I'll have to train harder...I'm still no match for the stronger ones out there'_, he thought as his blood coughing stopped while he could feel Hana & Yugao rubbing his back softly as he panted to regain his breath.

"Naruto-kun...please...let us help you", said Yugao in a pleading tone, a few tears rolling down her face surprising both Naruto & Hana for different reasons. Hana, because Yugao rarely ever let her emotions cross her face, she was the most calm & collected of the four in their group.

_'They want to help me?'_, he thought with a stunned expression as he searched their eyes deeply but couldn't help but be touched by the care & concern in them. Immediately his eyes widened as if he was hit by a strong tidal memory wave.

_'Those eyes...both of them...they are familiar'_, he thought as he searched Yugao's eyes deeply making her blush as she found him staring intently at him while Hana too watched as a look of recognition cross his face.

"Y-You're...Yugi-chan", he gasped before turning towards Hana, tears rolling down his face.

"A-And you m-must...be Tsume-chan", he asked with a lump in his throat. Just by looking at their familiar concern-filled eyes, he could identify them, eyes were the windows to ones soul after all.

Both of them had their eyes widened in surprise, their eyes getting wet as he finally recognised how.

"B-But...how did you know that it was us?", asked Hanain a quivering voice while Naruto immediately took her in a one-armed tight hug, tears streaming down while there was a true smile on his face.

"It really is you...I knew just by looking at your eyes...those beautiful eyes...both of you...you can transform your body but you cannot change your soul", he said making both of them blush at the compliment.

Hana's heart was beating mile a minute, she was in the arms of the man of her dreams, there was nothing else in the world that could've made her happier at that moment. Snuggling her cheek fondly to his sidehead, she wrapped her slender arms around him tightly, making him blush in return when he felt her body curves pressing against him.

_'He feels so warm...I have been dreaming of this moment for so long'_, she thought relishing in his warmth, wanting to remain in this position forever.

Meanwhile Yugao pouted a bit uncharacteristically as she tapped Naruto's unharmed shoulder.

Releasing Hana, he swear he could hear a dissappointed sigh escape her lips. Turning around, he saw Yugao standing with her arms open, an extremely cute with a mixture of sexy expression of a smile on her face.

"A hug for me too Naruto-kun?", she asked with innocent but brightly shining eyes. Naruto blushed as he saw how beautiful she looked with purple hair, unblemished milk creamy skin while the sun rays were reflecting off her as if she was a pure untouched soul. Smiling at her, he spoke.

"S-Sure Yugi-chan", he said as he slowly entered her waiting arms, hugging her tightly, pouring as much emotion into the hug as he did with Hana.

"I missed you Yugi-chan", he whispered making her blush upon feeling his hot breath tingling her skin, pulling her deeper into the hug as she too hugged him back. Her eyes were closed in contentment as if she had achieved her dream.

"I missed you more Naruto-kun", she said as tears of happiness streamed down her face. Naruto blushed when he realised that her C-cup breasts were pressing against his chest while Yugao was rubbing his backhead softly in what seemed to be an act of fondness as she sighed dreamily.

Meanwhile, Naruto started to blush when he realised that the hug was getting longer than a normal/friendly one.

Hana too slightly glared at Yugao before a devilish smirk crossed her beautiful face as she prominently closed the gap between her & the hugging pair and wrapped her arms around them, pressing her body tightly against the heavily blushing Naruto's back.

"W-Wha...Tsume-ch-chan?", he asked stupefied as to what they were doing but couldn't deny that it felt good. Yugao looked at Hana in confusion who smirked back at her before the kenjutsu mistress returned the gesture, nodding back at one of her best friends as they both consequently started to sandwich Naruto's face between their breasts. He could only protest helplessly as they continued to mercilessly tease him.

"Does it feel good Naruto-kun?", asked Yugao with a blush while Hana couldn't say anything as she just enjoyed the moment. Naruto would've slipped into unconsciousness with a nose bleed but only his determination kept him up.

_'I will not faint for the third time in a day dattebayo!'_, he thought & being the clever prankmaster he was, using his lone working arm he grabbed hold of Yugao's right mound, whom he was facing and gave it a hard squeeze.

"Aah..", Yugao moaned loudly in a mix of pleasure as well as surprise for what he did, accidently releasing him from her grip. Locking his left leg backwards with Hana's left leg who also was stunned by his action, he forced his body to fall back by releasing a very minute gravity force pulse through his right index finger. Because of the lock, Hana began to fell down along with Naruto who rolled around in midair to stop his descending body by placing his right hand on the ground. However unfortunately or fortunately (according to the great soon-to-be coming Jiraiya-sama), his hand slipped and his face descended towards her right breast, though his eyes widened when he noticed something poking the garment of her civilian clothes. Naruto's face paled when he realised the situation here.

_'Oh my god...she's not wearing a ...a...what do they call it...AHA! She's not wearing a BRA!... Oh I'm so fucked'_, those were his last thoughts before the slow motion ended and he fell on her form, a loud moan escaping Hana's lips who was blushing up a storm, while Yugao just continued to watch this disastrous comedy. And guess what was in Naruto's mouth right now which led to Hana to moan loudly.

Getting up comically, faster than the speed of light, he had his eyes as wide as saucers while he pinched his nose to stop the bloodloss.

"I-I'm sorry!", he said while flailing his arms wildly, whereas Yugao & Hana both had furious blush on their faces, trying to process just what had happened here.

"I knew you two wouldn't be able to control yourself"

All of them snapped their heads to see Kurenai & Anko standing on a branch, the latter having a wide grin plastered on her face while Kurenai was smirking.

However both lost their amused expressions when they saw Naruto's bandaged form, their eyes immediately being filled with concern & worry for the one they loved. Both of them body flickered to where he was standing and Kurenai immediately grabbed his shoulders, surprising him.

"Naruto-kun...who did this to you?", she asked with rage boiling inside of her. He had just gotten out of the hospital, and again he was injured like this.

_'Usually he heals VERY fast...there's no need for any bandages on a normal routine, but if his right arm is wrapped up...and considering his condition looks worst for the wear...someone beat him VERY badly. But who could attack him inside the village...Naru-kun's strong and can probably stand against a low-jounin...this work has to be a kage level shinobi's'_, thought Anko as she studied his condition with a critical eye.

"Ahehe...nothing to worry Kurenai-chan...this'll probably heal in a day", he said with a smile before hearing a cold voice.

"..?", asked Anko in a cold voice, her eyes telling him of the amount of anger that she was holding inside. Meanwhile Kurenai glared at Yugao & Hana.

"You...how can you play around when he's this much injured?", she said fiercely while both of them looked down in sadness.

"Sorry Kurenai-chan...we were just so happy to meet him after such a long time", said Hana in an apologetic tone while Naruto became angry that Kurenai was blaming them.

"Hey! It's not their fault...I myself forgot about my wounds when I realised who they were, it's only natural that they would act like that. And besides they were the one who saved me from the mob of those villagers", he said with a frown while Hana & Yugao had comical teary smiles on their faces.

_'He's defending us!'_, they both thought simultaneously, thier hearts swelling with happiness.

"I'm losing my patience Naruto", Naruto turned his head to see Anko looking at him with impatience in her eyes.

"Ahehe...you see, it was training", he said with a smile.

"Nonsense! I've seen you train so many times and even the most gruesome of your training sessions would injure you to the extent where you would heal in one hour maximum...seeing your condition, I can honestly say that you were beaten like a rag doll", said Anko with a frown while others nodded with her.

"You don't have to remind me of that", he said gloomily with black clouds over his head.

"Please tell us Naruto-kun...you don't have to hide anything", said Yugao with a serene smile as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

_'Should I tell them? Well they would get to know about Kaa-san's return sometime...I should just tell them'_, he thought before deciding on what to do.

"I guess I should tell you guys...you trust me right?", he said while they just smiled at him.

"With closed eyes you baka", said Hana with a smile making him feel warm that they completely trusted him.

So he told them everything from when he fled from the hospital, Kushina crashing into him after falling through a rift upto when Yugao & Hana saved him.

"So...you trust me on this right?", he said with a smile while others just had lost expressions on their faces as if Itachi was told that he was the worst genjutsu user in the world, and you can probably expect their reactions after that.

"Soooo...yeah, we trust you completely...but...DO YOU HONESTLY EXPECT US TO BELIEVE THAT SHIT!", yelled Anko in frustration while others nodded with her making Naruto sweatdrop.

"Naruto-kun...are you really alright...I think you have a head injury", said Kurenai worriedly making his eyes twitch.

"I'm only speaking the truth...it's upto you to believe me", he said with a serious expression while others looked at him worriedly, thinking that he had lost it. Deciding to change the subject, Hana spoke.

"Naruto-kun..., did you really do all that damage to that street...even when you were injured", she asked while he nodded with a grim expression making Anko whistle in amazement.

"I can bet that you used that Shinra Tensei thing which no one has been able to decipher yet", said Yugao calmy.

"Well I had to defend myself...all of them were going to attack me...besides there was no other technique that I could've used that time. The Rinnegan grants me another element in addition to five basic elements, that is gravity", he said while he could feel his wounds being healed up. His healing rates were astounding now, even surprising himself.

"This doujutsu really is something...I can easilly say that it is far stronger than Sharingan", spoke Kurenai as she wondered wether Kushina was truly back or not. All of them were now sitting in a circle as they talked.

"Naru-kun...what about your curse seal...it must be hard for you to ignore all the pain & the pressure it's evil chakra puts on you", said Anko with concern while Naruto just grinned at her.

"Nope! Ayumi-chan destroyed Orochimaru's influence over the seal & now it's completely harmless", he said making their eyes widen in surprise.

"Y-Your kidding right...I mean really...it's possible?", asked Anko in surprise while he just nodded, staring at the grass as if he was thinking something.

"And if you want...", he turned to face her,"I can remove it...though it will hurt a lot", he finished with a smile while all of their eyes were widened to stunned proportions before Anko crushed him into a hug as she held him tightly to her.

"I don't know if you can really remove that stain from me...but I'm so happy that you are willing to do this for me", said Anko with choked sobs as she continued to hug him tightly.

"Aah Anko-chan...my arm", almost yelled Naruto as he smiled painfully while Anko immediately released him, a sheepish grin on her face as she mumbled a quiet 'sorry'.

"I have one question though...how did jiji explained about the Rinnegan to other jounins & those council idiots", said Naruto questioningly.

"That's simple really Naruto-kun...Hokage-sama told them during your fight against Orochimaru, that because of the tension, pressures of the battle combined with the survival instinct, you were able to achieve the legendary doujutsu", answered Kurenai while Naruto nodded at her explaination.

Naruto's eyes widened when he felt Kushina's chakra fast approaching his location, and by the looks of it, she was moving extremely fast.

"Naru-kun...what happened?" asked Anko in confusion while Naruto just smiled at her.

"You'll believe me very soon", just as he finished the sentence, the ice queens eyes widened when a barely visible red blur passed them, their eyes widening to massive proportions.

_'This chakra'_

_'This speed'_

_'Red hair'_

_'Nee-chan?',_ thought Kurenai, Hana, Yugao & Anko in shock.

"Naru-kun!", sobbed Kushina as she crushed him into a hug as they both rolled on the ground.

"Kaa-san? What's the matter?", he asked with a pained expression as he held his stomach while Kushina just continued to hold him tightly.

"Thank god you're okay! I felt your chakra deplete suddenly through the seal...and when I found your location in these forests, I thought...that someone had kidnapped you...you were already heavily injured & so low on chakra", said Kushina, an occassional sob escaping her lips while Naruto just patted her back.

"Kaa-san...I'm not a kid for crying out loud", said Naruto with a chuckle while Kushina jerked her head back, her eyes narrowed while her cheeks were puffy & tear-stained from before, with fresh tears flowing over them.

_'Kawai...beautiful'_, he thought as he saw her unhappy pouty expression.

"What do you mean you're not a child? You're still my baby...and how dare you say that when I was worried so much for you...hmph...meanie, I'm not gonna talk to you", she pouted childishly as she turned her head back, while inwardly she was just relieved that he was alright. Seeing the destruction on that street, she was getting worried sick for him.

"O-Oi...Kaa-san! I was just joking...c'mon, please?", pleaded Naruto while Kushina's eyes widened when she saw four VERY familiar figures staring at her like she was a ghost.

"K-Kushina-nee-chan?"

**So tell me if you liked the chapter. Also, if you have any doubts about something then don't hesitate to drop a PM. And lastly, don't forget to check out my other one shot, and thanks for all your suggestions regarding Kushina's katana.^_^ **

**So until next time, take care and good luck with whatever you guys need in your life! Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	20. Partial Ascension!

**Wow! Never knew I could type this fast on my cell. But anyways, here's a quick update. And also, several of you guys are complaining that this fic is getting boring in the last chapters, and I admit that there has been second to none action, so I'll try to work on that. And remember that the genre of this fic is Adventure/Romance, so I'll also have to work on the romance department and character development ofcourse (which you find boring and in the future would complain about plot holes being in this fic). So yeah, I'm developing the plot, stating the facts which are gonna be used in the long run. **

**Do note that I have this fic very FAR planned out, and there's a reason I'm doing these things, which are not exciting I'll admit, but they are important nonetheless and will be the basis for the events happening in the future. And if you want action, don't worry cause when I get to the finals, there would be PLENTY of it. ^_^ But before that, I have to develop & explain several things. So with nothing else to rant about, let's begin with this sucker-**

**Chapter-20-Partial Ascension!**

'Kawai...beautiful', he thought as he saw her unhappy pouty expression.

"What do you mean you're not a child? You're still my baby...and how dare you say that when I was worried so much for you...hmph...meanie, I'm not gonna talk to you", she pouted childishly as she turned her head back, while inwardly she was just relieved that he was alright. Seeing the destruction on that street, she was getting worried sick for him.

"O-Oi...Kaa-san! I was just joking...c'mon, please?", pleaded Naruto while Kushina's eyes widened when she saw four VERY familiar figures staring at her like she was a ghost.

"K-Kushina-nee-chan?", stuttered Yugao while the other three had their jaws flat on the ground, they couldn't believe their eyes!

'Oh my god...he really was speaking the truth...and I thought it was just another one of his pranks', thought Anko as she rubbed her eyes a few times to ensure that it was not a dream.

"Oh my...they grow so fast!", mumbled Kushina to herself, she had just seen them yesterday, all small girls playing around her, calling her nee-chan.

"Kaa-san...I think you should go first", whispered Naruto while the ice queens just stood there in stunned silence.

"Um...what should I do? I only saw them yesterday jumping around your little form when I gave birth to you...they are the ones who are seeing me after thirteen years...shouldn't they do something first?", asked Kushina quietly as if they were discussing battle strategy while Naruto sweatdropped.

_'No doubt my genes came from her'_, he thought.

Meanwhile Kurenai eyes were narrowed as she thought it was some sort of trick.

"Naruto...if this is one of your pranks then I'm seriously gonna castrate you", warned Kurenai with narrowed eyes while other three too were glaring at Naruto, who was inwardly crying anime tears.

_'Why is it always me?'_, he thought before his eyebrows began twitching when he realised that his perverted tenant was still sleeping.

_"I'm getting cornered here and your sleeping soundly huh? WAKE THE HELL UP AYUMI OR I'LL KICK YOUR ASS!"_, he yelled inwardly when he heard her shuffling a bit in his mindscape.

"Huh...yeah...'yawn'...play with my ass Naruto-kun", she almost moaned, her eyes sleepy as she again started to snore lightly while Naruto blushed at her words.

'_On a second thought...just go back to sleep'_, he thought before zooming out.

"Hey! Why are you threatening Naru-kun?...Kurenai-chan...you three, it really is me", Kushina said with a frown.

"Prove it that you're Uzumaki Kushina", said Hana with a suspicious gaze. The village had tried it's million best to atleast find a trace of Kushina thirteen years ago. Naruto's story...it just wasn't logical.

Meanwhile Kushina sighed as she just did a one hand half-ram seal, while Naruto's & ice-queen's eyes widened whey say the light blue outline of chakra bordering her form, her tendrils of red hair getting lifted a bit before a massive circular wall of water formed out of nothing in midair and surrounded the group. All of them were slack-jawed while Naruto had a look of amazement on his face as he gazed at the massive water structure, several meters high which was surrounding them from all directions.

Their forms were shadowed because of the massive circular wall, water drops falling on them, birds flying out of their nests because of the disturbance while Kushina just kept her half-ram seal in position, a smirk on her face, not even looking winded after performing such a feat.

_'Holy piece of my shit! I knew she was strong and had godly affinity for water but this is ridiculous! Without handseals and harnessing water out of thin air...and using a jutsu at such massive scale...this is a water wall technique...and she looks to have used shape manipulation on it. Amazing! Will I even be able to ever catch upto her?'_, thought Naruto in astonishment as he looked at the colossal water wall with wide eyes.

Meanwhile the ice queens too weren't faring any better as they looked around amazed, like they were being enchanted by the mesmerizing water wall surrounding them, sun rays pouring through the liquid obstruction as if being purified by it and falling on their forms

_'Wow...I guess...this really is Kushina-nee-chan'_, thought Anko as few tears streamed down her face before the water wall slowly fell on the ground, dampening the ground with the grass becoming wet.

"So...you believe me now Hana-chan", said Kushina with a smirk before she felt herself being crushed in a four person death hug.

"NEE-CHAN!", they yelled in unison as the five fell to the ground, four of them immediately breaking into uncontrollable sobs as they hugged Kushina tighter to them, tears of unexplainable happiness falling down their faces as Naruto watched the touching scene with a smile on his face.

"We...missed you Kushina-nee-chan! Why did you leave us & Naruto-kun?", said Kurenai as she wrapped her arms around Kushina's waist while trying to control her sobs. Meanwhile Kushina had a sad smile on her face as she hugged all of them tightly, these four were very precious to her. Kushina had always considered them her little sisters and had shared everything with them. They along with Naruto were bundles of joy for her whom she would do anything to protect. Lovingly caressing Kurenai's back, she spoke in her own quivering voice.

"I'm sorry Kurenai-chan...your big sister couldn't be with you four & Naru-kun, but now I'm back and would never leave you", she said as the four of them started to cry harder making her sweatdrop.

_'Did I said something wrong'_, she thought with a silly smile on her face. Lifting up Anko's crying face, she wiped the snake mistress's tears before caressing her cheek.

"Anko-chan...I'm sorry that you got the curse mark and had to suffer so much", said Kushina with few tears welling up in her eyes while Anko just shook her head, her eyes teary.

_'Why do women look so cute when they cry with happiness'_, thought Naruto as he just watched the scene with a smile on his face.

"N-No...I'm just happy that y-you're back N-Nee-chan. As long as I h-have you, Naru-kun a-and my best friends, I would be fine...besides N-Naru-kun suffered much more than me...why did you leave him, he needed you", said Anko, her voice almost getting angry at the last line while Kushina just had a sad look on her face.

"That...Naruto-kun has already explained Anko-chan", said Yugao after getting control over her raging emotions before Anko nodded her head hesitantly as she remembered what Naruto had told them. As ridiculous as it was, Kushina was alive in front of them, so Naruto must be telling the truth.

"I'm proud of you four...becoming jounins at such young age, having created your reputation throughout Konoha. And thanks for atleast trying to take care of Naruto-kun", said Kushina with grateful eyes.

"Naruto-kun is like our brother Nee-chan...we'll be always there for him", said Hana before Kushina grinned an all-knowing grin, making the four of them nervous that she knew everything.

"Brother huh? Is that the only way you feel for Naru-kun...huh Hana-chan, Kurenai-chan, Yugao-chan, Anko-chan?", said Kushina making the four of them blush as they averted their gazes while Naruto had his eyes widened as he had heard with his sensitive hearing.

_'I knew that Kurenai-chan liked me...but Anko-chan, Hana-chan & Yugao-chan too? Well I like all four of them...who wouldn't? But do I like them only because of their looks or is there something else? Kurenai-chan...she has this mysterious elegance around her, she's caring, kind...well, only to selected people and when she smiles, it makes me feel like butterflies are squinting around in my stomach. Anko-chan...her personality is so bright, even after suffering so much, she's also kind, cheery, can lift the mood in any situation, she loves pranks just like me! But the most important thing is that I feel this need to embrace her, it's as if her heart is still fragile, she also needs love just like me, but if she too likes me, then I should take the first step. And Yugao & Hana...it's been like six years since I have interacted with them, I just wanna know these two better'_, thought Naruto, absorbed in his own thoughts as he watched the scene before suddenly an evil grin came across his face.

"SAY CHEESE!", all five of them lifted their heads ( with Kushina looking back over her head), before their vision was filled with a bright flash of light.

"Naruto-kun wha...", trailed Yugao in surprise as she rubbed her eyes to get it to adjust with the normal light. They opened their eyes for them to be widened when they saw Naruto standing there with a large grin on his face.

"Hehe...I wonder how much will remain of your ice queen image if everyone sees this", he said with a devious smile while the four prodigies had looks of horror on their faces.

"You wouldn't dare!", said Kurenai in a shocked tone making Naruto's grin widen, making the four of them gulp nervously.

"Ehehe...you think so?", he said, his mischievous grin looking more threatening than Orochimaru's cackle of madness to them.

"Oh come on Kurenai-chan...can't you see? He's just joking", said Anko with a nervous smile as she patted Kurenai's back.

"Yeah...she's right...you wouldn't do such a thing would you Naruto-kun?", asked Hana with a confident smile while Yugao had a nervous expression on her face.

_'Oh Kami...what if he really does it...my precious reputation!'_, thought the kenjutsu mistress while praying that Naruto was only joking.

"Oh I don't know...I also have a reputation of a great prank master to keep you know", he said while twirling the camera in his hands, grinning widely as their faces paled simultaneously. Kushina had an amused smirk on her face while the four of them slowly released her and stood up as they calmly dusted their clothes, collective sweet smiles on their faces. They looked at each other, eyes closed as they nodded to each other. Naruto immediately leaped on a branch above and started to run when he saw them dash towards him at amazing speeds.

"GIVE THAT BACK NARUTO!", he heard them yell from behind him as his laughter echoed throughout the forest.

"HAHAHA...CATCH ME IF YOU CAN ICE QUEENS!", he yelled back but after a while they quickly caught upto him with their high speeds.

"HA! Give me that!", exclaimed Anko as she snatched the camera off his hands while they had Naruto into a lock as each of them held him tightly to a trunk.

"Hey! C'mon...I was only joking", he said with a pout while they had hid the camera somewhere miraculously.

"Hehe...now who's on the top Naruto-kun?", said Hana with a grin making him sigh in defeat.

"Hn! If it wasn't for my injuries, I had give you guys a run for your money", he said while Yugao's eyes widened when she saw the bandages on his stomach due to his civilian shirt getting crinkled up.

"What's this?", she said with narrowed eyes as she gazed at Naruto, while other's eyes widened too when they saw his whole wrapped up stomach.

"Y-Your stomach too...Naruto-kun, who did this to you?", asked Kurenai while he just averted his eyes making them angry.

"I did this", they turned back to see Kushina standing there with a sad expression on her face.

"Nee-chan? What?", asked Anko with a shocked expression.

"Anko-chan...it was for training...I was just injured", said Naruto before he was silenced by a glare from Kurenai.

"What kind of training is this? Beating him to a bloody pulp?", asked Hana furiously while Kushina just sighed.

"This is mainly to train his naked eye, increase his speed by pushing him to the limit, developing his sixth sense, endurance, pain tolerance...and maybe, when his life is in danger, he could activate the second level of Rinnegan", she said making all of their eyes widen in shock.

"There's a second level to the Rinnegan?", asked Yugao in shock.

"Y-You were aiming for that too?", asked Naruto in astonishment that she had planned so ahead in one night. Although he knew that she must have had some ulterior motives to train him like that, but he never thought that her thoughts had gone this far. Kushina nodded as she continued.

"But this kind of training which I've already planned would happen once in a week, as your body wouldn't be able to keep up with the constant stress", she said with a serious expression while the ice queens nodded.

"Then what will I train in for the rest of the week?", he said as the four of them released him while he tied his shirt back, with Anko having a blush on her face as she stared at his muscled chest making Kurenai roll her eyes at her.

'_Geez! You might want to see the situation girl'_, she thought.

"For the rest of the week Naru-kun...you will learn the art of fuinjutsu", she said with a smirk while the grin on Naruto's face couldn't have been wider.

"Awesome Kaa-san!", he exclaimed while ice queens just stood there dumbfounded.

"Are you sure nee-chan?", said Kurenai with a raised eyebrow.

"Fuinjutsu is a very difficult art to even understand...and he's only thirteen years old", said Yugao with a hesitant expression while Naruto frowned.

"Age doesn't matter in the world of shinobi Yugao-chan...Itachi-sensei became an Anbu captain when he was thirteen", he said in disapproval while Yugao sighed.

"Fine...do whatever you want", she said with a sigh while Naruto put his hand on her shoulder.

"Believe me...I know I can do it!", he said with a wide smirk as he clenched his fist with determination making Kushina smile.

"Baka", whispered Yugao as she shook her head while chuckling to herself.

"Yeah! I know whisker-chan can do it!", said Anko with a grin making Naruto's eyebrows twitch in irritation.

"You're still using that retarded name?", he asked while Anko just pouted.

"Aww...c'mon, it's such a cute name...just like you", she said with a smile while ruffling his hair making him blush which he tried to cover by an expression of irritation making Kushina giggle at his behaviour as the group shared laughter making Naruto further blush in embarrassment.

However their expressions suddenly became serious when they felt another presence among them.

"Come out whoever it is", said Kushina in a cold voice when an Anbu blurred out of a tree and landed in front of her, making her sigh in relief. She had thought it to be an enemy or something.

"K-Kushina-sama...you're really alive...I couldn't believe that Hokage-sama was speaking the truth", exclaimed the Anbu in shock before he quickly composed himself while Naruto had an eyebrow raised.

_'I've never seen any Anbu talk with emotion in his/her voice...must be a reaaallllyyyy big shocker for them'_, he thought as he saw Kushina sigh.

"Hai...now tell me, why have you come here?", she said with a raised eyebrow as she glanced away to see that the her little sisters were back in their 'ice queen mode'.

"Hokage-sama asked for your presence in the jounin's meeting which would be taking place shortly", he said while Kushina nodded before he shunshined out of their vision.

"Seems like we have to go...I guess this meeting was to announce your arrival", said Hana while Kushina nodded with her.

"See you later Naruto-kun", said Kurenai with a smile before kissing him on the cheek making him blush.

"Hey! That's not fair!", yelled Anko before Kurenai winked at her & shunshined out of the forest. Not wanting to be left behind, Anko too kissed him on the cheek lovingly followed by Hana & Yugao, the latter of whom was a bit shy before shunshining out of the arena leaving behind a red tomato which was Naruto's face. Meanwhile Kushina had watched the scene with a smile.

_'Those four are definitely gonna make lovely wives for Naru-kun'_, she thought before walking towards Naruto who looked at her, the blush still on his face.

"See you later Naru-kun", she said with a smile before kissing him lovingly on the forehead.

"And stay out of trouble...also, from now on, I don't want you using Shinra Tensei & Banshou Tenin whenever you feel like...you saw what using one of those techniques in excess did to you earlier. You haven't mastered your gravity element and hence it's untrained usage is dangerous for you...so I advise you to use it only in the extreme case or until you have reached to an appropriate level in gravity nature manipulation. The same goes with your Rinnegan...don't just use it for show-off or to look cool in other's eyes...keep its use low so you can use it as a trump card when you fight. You're doujutsu training too I've thought of, so don't worry about anything just rest for today, ne?", she said with a smile while Naruto just drank in everything she had said. Nobody had guided him in his life, and he was not going to ignore what she had said.

"Thanks Kaa-san", he said with a warm smile making her heart melt, her eyes saddening when she remembered how she beat him today.

"Naru-kun...I'm sorry for this morning, but do remember that it would benefit you in the long run", she said with teary eyes before hugging him tightly, as if reassuring herself that he was still in her embrace, within her arm's reach, that she could still touch him.

"Don't be Kaa-san...after all, it's for the first time in my life that someone has hit me for my own welfare", he said with a chuckle as he hugged her back making her giggle a bit. Then...as if on impulse, as if his body acting on itself, on desire, he suddenly pushed her back with his hands on her shoulders, a confused expression on her face. Quickly leaning in, he kissed her on the lips, almost like a peck as it lasted for a second or two but enough to discharge electric bolts through their forms when their lips touched in a chaste kiss.

Pulling back after the really tantalizing short kiss, he grinned at her before shunshining out himself. Meanwhile Kushina had a dark tomato blush on her face, as she touched her lips, as if she was still entranced by that short but sensual kiss, as if still savoring the feel of his lips on hers, before she broke into a sweet bright smile.

**Timeskip: Next Day: 5 AM**

"Alright, so listen up Naru-kun...today I want to test your limits against Anko-chan...and from there, I'll decide in what areas you're lacking. Although I've gone through your memories I still want to see how you fair against Anko-chan. Except Ayumi's chakra...everything is allowed", ordered Kushina as now they were standing in the forest of death. Anko had persuaded Kushina yesterday to let her help train Naruto. Although Kurenai, Yugao & Hana too wanted to help him, but Kushina decided that Anko was sufficient enough. Also, Kurenai had to train her team too, Yugao was on a mission whereas Hana was busy with her clan duties.

"Don't hold back Naruto...cause I won't", said Anko with a smirk as she popped her knuckles while a completely healed Naruto stood beside her.

"Huh...you said something?", he said with an innocent expression making a vein pop on Anko's forehead.

_'Oh he's so gonna get it from me...and Kakashi, just you wait...I'll kick your ass into the next village for spoiling my Naru-kun'_, she thought with a devious grin while Kushina had to suppress a giggle at their antics.

"And Anko-chan...try not to use the curse mark here...like I said yesterday, Naru-kun would remove that stain from you today", said Kushina with a serious expression while Anko was restraining the urge to climb the Hokage tower and yell with happiness 'TAKE THAT YOU SNAKE BASTARD!', before she nodded at Kushina's request.

"This area has been surrounded by a seal barrier, so you don't have to worry about anyone sensing your chakra in the village", said Kushina as she leaped on a branch above while Naruto and Anko stared at each with serious expressions, their eyes cold as they prepared to give their all.

_'Alright...she's a jounin...a prodigy hailed even by Orochimaru once...so by all standards of logic, her speed & strength should be higher than mine. But I have ninjutsu with tons of chakra to spare along with my lightning fist taijutsu...I'll have to be careful here'_, he thought as he slipped into a basic stance, his attention full on his opponent as he slipped just a minor amount of youki in his eyes & ears.

"You'll have to do more than just basic taijutsu Naru-kun", said Anko with a smirk, hoping to rile him up while he just stared at her in utter seriousness & concentration.

"Whenever you are ready you two!", yelled Kushina from above, standing on the branch as she waited with anticipation as to how Naruto would handle Anko.

Meanwhile Anko slipped into her own version of snake style. Deciding to begin the show, Naruto immediately threw a kunai in her direction with amazing blurry speed which took Anko with surprise. He was a genin and even if he was much stronger than a genin, she had thought that his strength was on par with chunin level but the speed with which the kunai was thrown was atleast low-jounin.

However she herself was considered an elite one and just as she was about to dodge the kunai easily, her eyes widened when it poofed to reveal Naruto who aimed for a punch at her mid-section which she dodged before striking it with a blurred devastating strike.

_'Hm...nice one...his speed is off the charts for someone his age'_, thought Kushina while Anko's eyes again widened as a punch followed through the dispelled clone's smoke. Using her trained & fast reflexes, she grabbed hold of his arm before flipping him over her shoulder.

_'Heh...so he used the clone as a distraction...not bad Naru-kun...atleast better than before when you attacked with your clones head on'_, thought Anko as she went through a few handseals while Naruto corrected himself in mid-air.

"**Katon: Karyuu Endan** (Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Projectile)",she yelled as she exhaled hot flames from her mouth forming a large dragon which sped towards Naruto whose eyes were widened as he gazed at the deadly jutsu. He could feel the heat even from far away as it approached him with high speed, almost like it was roaring in anger as if it was eager to decimate him.

_'Shit! No time for any handseals...gotta do something fast'_, he thought as he saw, while in midair, the fire dragon closing the distance at astonishing speeds. Suddenly an idea kicking him, he put his hand in front of a large branch which was coming sideways while his body was descending. Just as the branch was in front of him, he released a gravity pulse just like before of enough strength to push his body sideways and hence was barely able to dodge the blazing dragon while his shirt was burnt a bit due to him not being able to completely dodge it. Landing on the ground, he was again surprised when the fire dragon changed its course in mid-air and descended towards him with even greater speed than before due to addition of gravitational force.

_'No way! She knows fire shape manipulation...Kakashi-sensei did say that fire was the most difficult element to control'_, he thought in astonishment before quickly performing agile fast faced handseals before slamming both of his hands on the ground.

"**Hyouton: Kōri Enkyanpu no Baria!** (Ice Release: Ice Encampment Wall)", he yelled, pushing what would be large amounts of chakra for a chunin. Immediately a wall of ice rose from the grassy ground as it was in front of Naruto protectively just in time to clash with the raging fire dragon. But to Naruto's surprise, the dragon bursted into small batters of flames while his ice wall slowly melted into water due to the heat.

His hands still on the ground, his eyes widened when his youkified ears picked up extremely subtle sounds of someone approaching.

_'Behind me!'_, he thought before, he performed a handstand helicopter kick for it to come in contact with Anko's jaw, who puffed into smoke after hosting the kick.

_'Shit! A kage bunshin...'_, he thought as he jumped off his hands to stand on the wet grass due to the ice melting. Looking around, he saw that it was eerily quiet and that the area was covered in steam due to the water evaporating, thus leaving Anko nowhere to be found. Thrusting his chakra enhanced foot on the water logged soil which resulted in water droplets splashing all around him, he quietly activated his Rinnegan while the droplets were around him in midair before going through another set of handsigns.

"**Hyouton: Sensatsu Suishou** (Ice Release: Thousand Flying Water Needles)", he whispered to himself when he had located her chakra network due to his Rinnegan. The mid-aired water droplets turned into sharp ice needles before they were hurled with even greater speeds than the previously thrown kunai in the direction of where Anko was standing.

Though his eyes widened when the chakra network disappeared after the needles had hit.

_'Another shadow clone?'_, he thought in confusion before his sensitive ears picked up hissing sounds as he immediately substituted away just in time to avoid a snake, whose poisonous fangs pierced the substituted wood plank.

"That was a close one Naru-kun...you better pay attention next time", said Anko with a grin as the snake retracted back to who knows where inside her sleeve.

_'Damn! I'm a close range fighter, there's no use in keeping my distance from her. I'll just engage her in taijutsu'_, he thought while standing behind a tree trunk before thinking of a tactic.

"**Kirigakure no Jutsu** (Hidden Mist Technique)", he whispered after going through a short set of handseals. Although this technique was a secret of Kirigakure no Sato, apparently Itachi had copied it during one of his confrontations and had taught it to Naruto as it was a really useful technique, specially for the doujutsu users.

Eventually, the area was covered in mist, though not as heavy as Zabuza as he still wasn't proficient in this technique. Rinnegan activated he looked back besides the trunk before his eyes widened in shock when he saw a huge chakra source coming at him with tremendous speeds.

Immediately diving to the right, he barely avoided being gulfed down by it's wide open mouth. Leaping on a branch he threw several shuriken at the large summon.

_'She's using summons...I see , she's using a snake's ability of finding its prey by vibrating it's tongue to find my position...clever indeed Anko-chan'_, he thought with a smirk before going through another set of handseals.

"**Fuuton: Shuriken Kage Bunshin Jutsu!** (Wind Release: Shadow Shuriken Clone Technique)", he yelled before the wind natured chakra coated shuriken pierced through the summon easily making it dispell immediately.

"**Doton:** **Earo Boruda **(Earth Release: Aero Boulder)", he heard Anko shout out the name of the technique before large boulders of earth were thrown at him.

_'Earth Release too? Man she's strong...she's countering my every move and the fact that she's matching me in ninjutsu is really something'_, he thought after landing on the ground, dodging the thrown chunks of earth. Meanwhile Anko was getting frustrated and wanted to end this game of cat & mouse.

Though she did remember what Kushina had said to her yesterday.

_"Anko-chan...when you spar with Naruto, make sure to put him in a life-death situation atleast once. That's the only way to make him stronger in short amount of time...a body will exceed its limits when it is in mortal peril. I know this is not the best way...but there's little of what we can do. I've seen how strong that mysterious masked man was and it's important that we make Naru-kun stronger as fast as possible. It's difficult for me too...but going through Naru-kun's memories I know that he's probably the best survivor in Konoha. I trust in his abilities...and I have my faith in Ayumi-chan too"_

_'Guess it's time for the most difficult part...I'll just use of those really destructive jutsus'_, she thought before she started performing extremely fast paced long set of handseals. Meanwhile Naruto's eyes widened when he saw Anko's chakra spiking up to incredible amounts.

_'I never knew she had this much chakra'_, he thought.

_"Naruto-kun...be prepared, she's gonna pull something serious out there"_, warned Ayumi

"HAAAAAAHHHHHHH", screamed Anko as chakra became visible around her while Naruto grew nervous as her chakra levels kept rising, reaching to kage level reserves, her eyes now a glowing shade of blue which were overflowing with chakra.

Meanwhile Kushina's eyes too were widened as she saw Anko's chakra levels rise, though it still dwarfed in comparison to her own & Naruto's, it was stillmind buggling. She wasn't an Uzumaki nor a jinchuriki and Kushina was sure that Anko wasn't using her curse seal chakra.

"**KATON:** **YON BURIZADOFUEI MUDESHIMESHON **(Fire Release: Four Blizzard Flame Decimation)", yelled the snake mistress before expelling large amounts of white blazing fire from her mouth. Such was the intensity of the flames that air too seem to be vibrating around it while Naruto's eyes widened in horror as he watched that she just kept releasing fire for like 10-20 seconds. The emitted fire divided into four large flame tendrils in midair before all of them shot towards a stunned Naruto from all four directions.

_'Naru-kun...what would you do now...this is an S-rank jutsu...you have to give your all'_, thought Anko as she kept releasing unending flames while Kushina too had a look of astonishment on her face.

_'Naru-kun...give your everything...I trust in you sochi. And Anko-chan...I never imagined that you would get this strong'_, she thought as she gazed worriedly at Naruto. Though her eyes widened in horror when she saw him standing stunned rooted on the ground, the same expression on his face when he had first fought the demon brothers during the wave mission: fear.

'No...he's scared...he wouldn't make it. This was a wrong decision...I have to save him!', thought Kushina as she dashed towards Naruto with mind buggling speeds.

Meanwhile Naruto had a look of paralysed fear on his face, he tried to move, to do something, anything to save himself but he was just intimidated by those humongous fire tendrils coming his way.

_"DAMMIT NARUTO! MOVE OR YOU'LL DIE! WHAT ABOUT YOUR DREAM OF BECOMING HOKAGE! WHAT ABOUT PROTECTING YOUR PRECIOUS ONES? DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH PAIN IT WOULD CAUSE TO EVERYONE IF YOU DIE HERE? KUSHINA HAS PUT SO MUCH FAITH IN YOU! ARE YOU GOING TO DISAPPOINT HER? ARE YOU GOING TO JUST STAND THERE LIKE A COWARD? __**ARE YOU WEAK NARUTO**__?_", yelled Ayumi as she tried to pull him out of his fear-induced paralysis, trying to provoke him to save himself. And it did, the last line did snapped him.

_'No...I'm not weak. I've trained so hard...I'M NOT WEAK!'_, he thought with widened eyes as he began to go through several handseals, his hands a blur as he too built up insane amounts of chakra, tendrils of white chakra now revolving around him as he continued to do handseals while the white burning flames continued to speed towards him like a raging bull.

Meanwhile Kushina had stopped when she noticed him start to perform handseals at speeds he shouldn't be capable of doing even with all of his training, her eyes widened though when she recognized the jutsu by the handseals he was doing.

'_No…..he's performing that technique….but he wasn't able to do it effectively, moreover this is an S-rank technique he's defending against…but….what if he really does it?'_, she thought as she skidded to a halt just a few metres away from, her chakra already building up in case Naruto wasn't able to stop Anko's technique. She then remembered from his memories of two months training with Itachi about the technique.

_**Flashback: Itachi's Tsukiyomi Realm: One day before the end of Naruto's training**_

"Aaah dammit! Why can't I do this idiotic technique…I've done all that this scroll has said, what am I doing wrong?", said a clone Naruto to himself while you could hundreds of other clones trying to perform the same technique but failing to do it effectively.

"Crystal element is next to impossible to even use effectively Naruto-kun, let alone master…you need to have a special bloodline for it to automatically combine water, wind & lightning and form crystal. And although you are somehow forming the crystal element, it is not strong enough to use in a fight effectively. The molecules need to be tightly packed in a crystal for it to be used effectively and possibly justify its myth of being the strongest defence in the world ", said Itachi in a monotone voice while a clone looked at him in confusion.

"Then why is it even stated in the scroll that a Rinnegan user can use Crystal release if it's almost impossible", he said while Itachi sighed as he took a seat on a boulder, in a clearing of a forest which seemed to be a clone of the forest of death.

"What I mean to say is that….right now, Rinnegan is partially doing its work of combining the three elements. It is strong enough to combine two elements effectively…but not three, looks like it will become stronger as you reach closer to attaining the second level, and hence that day, you would be able to use crystal release effectively", said the prodigal Uchiha with a thoughtful expression while Naruto nodded with him, understanding the logic behind his explanation.

"You can think of it this way that right now you have the first level….but the moment when you are able to atleast USE the crystal release effectively, it would probably mean that you've attained a sort of pseudo second level", he finished while the clone sighed in frustration.

"Great! I have to achieve one extra level…..oh well, let's get back to training"

_**Flashback End**_

'_Could it be?'_, thought Kushina with widened eyes, her breath bated as she saw him slam his hands on the ground, his chakra levels breaking through the roofs as he yelled.

"**SHOTON:BUNSHI HANSHA NO TATE **(Crystal Release: Shield of Molecular Reflection)"

'_He's using up all of his chakra in this attack'_, thought Kushina as she too formed a large wall of water behind her, ready to extinguish the raging flames if Naruto's technique fails like before.

'_Impossible! Crystal Release? That clan was said to be wiped out! And even with the Rinnegan…..how can he use a tertiary element at this age….he's thirteen years old for Kami's sake. Kushina-nee better throw her technique in or Naruto's gonna be injured VERY badly'_, thought Anko as she kept controlling her technique, waiting for Kushina to save Naruto. Though she herself could cancel the technique, but Kushina had said not to and if Naruto failed, that she would help him herself.

Though her eyes almost bugged out when suddenly spikes of said crystal pierced through the ground to surround Naruto completely from all directions, forming a perfectly shaped crystal doom.

'_Let's see if it's molecular structure is strong enough this time'_, thought Kushina as she kept herself ready, ready to throw the water wall on the flames immediately. But she was not disappointed when the flames collided with the doom, covering it completely as the area became dimly lit in addition to the sunlight because of the bright flames while Kushina prayed that he was alright in that doom, which was on fire right now. Trees rustled madly due to the wind created by the disturbance while a crater formed on the ground due to the force Anko's technique was applying, the grass surrounding the crystal structure was on fire while Anko released the technique leading the flames bursting in small sparks of fire as they spread in all directions falling on the grass, making it catch fire. Kushina immediately released the water wall which fell on the affected area, the large chakra enhanced liquid wall covering most of the area as steam started to form obstructing their view much to Kushina's & Anko's frustration.

Both of them dashed full speed towards the epicenter of the attacked area, concerned expressions on their faces while Anko was panting heavily due to using such high level technique.

'_I hope he's okay…..that was one of the strongest fire attacks known in Konoha, if his defence even had one weak point…..he would be seriously injured and it might take Ayumi three-four days to heal him'_, thought Anko before her eyes widened to saucers along with Kushina when they saw the shadow image of the crystal creation through the irritating steam.

'_It can't be….'_, thought Kushina with unbelief as the steam slowly cleared out to see the cracked & tattered form of the crystal still standing, which slowly crumbled into tiny pieces. Inside was the heavily panting form of Naruto, on his knees while his eyes were half lidded whereas beads of sweat were rolling down his face. Kushina's & Anko's heart swelled with relief & amazement for this young prodigy. Though the most amazing part was that his half lidded eyes were glowing white, for like three-four seconds before they reverted back to the purple shade of Rinnegan. The only difference this time was that in addition to one concentric circle, there was a second concentric circle, whose black outline was dotted (like this: - - - - - -, signifying the pseudo level) unlike the smooth outline texture of the first ring.

'_Oh my fucking sensei….he really did defended himself against it….he stopped one of the strongest S-rank fire attacks in Konoha by himself! And does his Rinnegan look different than before…..Seriously! this doujutsu is even more confusing than Uchiha's gender'_, thought Anko in frustration as she slipped to her knees in exhaustion of using one jutsu after another, and finally an S-rank one.

'_He really did it! He unlocked the second pseudo level of Rinnegan! I knew that putting him in this type of situation would make him tap deeper into his potential….._

"This….really is exhausting…..training this baka is a training in itself", said Anko with a smile as she wiped the sweat of her brows while Kushina ran to the laid exhausted form of Naruto.

"Ramen….ramen…..Ichiraku ramen", he mumbled continuously while laying on the grassy patch which was protected by the crystal structure whereas Kushina sweatdropped at her son, a smile gracing her face as she held his head in her lap.

'_This is too exhausting…..not physically but mentally, if we keep this up, my hair will go dry with all the worrying I do over him. But in the end….the results would be worth the pain right now Naru-kun….both for you & me. We all have to stay strong together in this'_, she thought while Naruto slowly fluttered his eyes open, which were now back to their normal oceanic blue colour.

'_I wonder what extra abilities might have been unlocked with this level…..and I never thought….even Itachi wouldn't have thought of the Rinnegan signifying it's pseudo ascension in this way….pretty interesting doujutsu. And I have to develop my Sharingan too…..probably Jiraiya can help me…oh hehe, his face was to laugh upon when he saw me standing in front of him yesterday. And from that….why hasn't that pervert arrived yet?_', thought Kushina in irritation as she picked up Naruto on her back, making her blush when she felt his muscled chest.

'_Aahh…..so he has finally come, sometimes I really wonder how Tsunade-sama tolerated his legendary perverseness'_, thought Kushina as she looked up in the direction of where a shadow was descending towards her.

"THE GREAT JIRAIYA-SAMA HAS ARRIVED KUSHI-CHAN!"

**So tell me if you liked the chapter? And I bet that none of you saw that pseudo thing coming….and if some of you guys have flames packed to be thrown at me, target a dustbin instead. This is fanfiction, my imagination, and if you don't like it then you can stop reading this if you want to. **

**So yeah, please review guys, they have been really going scarce in these past chapters and I hope that some of the action in this chapter made up, if only a bit. So thanks for reading, and also, WAIT FOR ALL THE THINGS TO BE EXPLAINED. Yesterday's events in the fic will be described in the next chapter, so yeah, be patient. ^_^**

**N6023**


	21. Confessions

**Wohoo! Got some holidays because of a national festival…..sat down and started typing like crazy on my phone and got this chapter out in three days….WTF?**

**Ahm…so yeah, so here's the next chapter which is really long, much longer than the previous chapters, so I hope you appreciate my efforts for you guys and review. So with nothing else to say…let's get on with the show ^_^:**

**Chapter-21-Confessions**

'_I wonder what extra abilities might have been unlocked with this level…..and I never thought….even Itachi wouldn't have thought of the Rinnegan signifying it's pseudo ascension in this way….pretty interesting doujutsu. And I have to develop my Sharingan too…..probably Jiraiya can help me…oh hehe, his face was to laugh upon when he saw me standing in front of him yesterday. And from that….why hasn't that pervert arrived yet?_', thought Kushina in irritation as she picked up Naruto on her back, making her blush when she felt his muscled chest.

'_Aahh…..so he has finally come, sometimes I really wonder how Tsunade-sama tolerated his legendary perverseness'_, thought Kushina as she looked up in the direction of where a shadow was descending towards her.

"THE GREAT JIRAIYA-SAMA HAS ARRIVED KUSHI-CHAN!", he screamed with a large grin on his face only to be met by Kushina's foot, making him fall comically on the ground, a large red imprint of a shinobi footwear on his pained face.

"Shut up you pervert….and why didn't you come early like you were asked to?", asked Kushina with narrowed eyes while a large grin again formed on his face, and before he could retort back his eyes widened as his face immediately became serious upon seeing the extra weight on Kushina's back making Kushina look at him in confusion.

"I-Is that Naruto? Kami…..he's a clone of Minato", said Jiraiya in wonder as he leaned in closer to further inspect the boys features.

"And you would've noticed that if you had even a second to look at him when he needed you the most", spat Kushina with venom in her eyes while Jiraiya lowered his head in shame.

"I told you I'm sorry Kushina…..I had to maintain the spy network and find Orochimaru…..moreover, who do you think informed Sarutobi-sensei about the Akatsuki, I also had to work sometimes as a messenger between sensei & Itachi", said Jiraiya in a quiet voice, much to the surprise of Kushina that how easily his mood could change.

"Don't give me that crap Jiraiya…..you could've atleast checked up on him once….and jiji has even more duties to perform than you, but he atleast cared for Naru-kun whenever he needed it. Kakashi, Kurenai, Anko, Hana & Yugao protected Naru-kun whenever they could, but you were the worst case and I know that the only thing you were interested in was to fuck a woman senseless. And why didn't you or jiji tell Tsunade-sama that Naru-kun was alive?", she said with her voice raising whereas Anko watched the scene with a frown, directed towards Jiraiya. Although the snake mistress respected the guy for he was the legendary toad sannin, but he deserved every ounce of ass-kicking that he had reserved for himself for the past thirteen years.

"Tsunade was deep down in depression…..she had already succumbed herself to gambling & alcohol, we believed that she was not fit mentally to host Naruto's childhood", said Jiraiya as he gazed at Naruto, as if studying his every feature, his every skin cell which he had missed seeing grow these past thirteen years. True, Jiraiya loved his godson very much, and although he hadn't personally seen or talked to Naruto in the past, the stories the ice queens, Kakashi & Hiruzen told him was more than enough to make his respect for the boy go high. The fact that Naruto was the son of his student & Kushina made the boy all the more precious to him.

During his times outside the village, Jiraiya would often wonder how Naruto was fairing in the village. And as if on cue, his inner self, the guilty self would always scream at him-

'_YOU WONDER HOW HE'S DOING YOU BASTARD? HOW ABOUT ACTUALLY GOING THERE AND HELP YOUR GODSON!'_

But he wanted to keep him safe, and when he came to know first-hand about the Akatsuki, he had increased his time out of the village, often navigating between different spy network locations to get even one bit of information about his godson's seekers. To atleast make sure that Naruto was provided with basic necessities , he often sent large sums of money to Hiruzen from which the boy's stipend was provided to him, but those small sliver of efforts to help the boy still didn't explain his absence from the boy's childhood.

And when the triangular alliance was formed along with activation of Naruto's Rinnegan, he had practically flew back to the village. His eyes had bugged out of his sockets when he had read the message about his godson, activating such a legendary doujutsu, which he had thought that was lost with the death of his student Nagato. Moreover, Sarutobi had told him that he need not stay out of the village now seeing as Itachi & Kisame were already working for him, and thus he had reached the village yesterday for him to receive another jaw breaking shocker: Uzumaki Kushina, the supposed dead mother of his godson, and the most strangest thing was that she did not look one day older than she was thirteen years ago.

"So? You think that the villagers were mentally fit to host his childhood?", she asked while Jiraiya sighed in frustration.

"Look….I know I've made some mistakes and I'm sorry alright! It's not like I don't care for the boy…..you know I love him very much Kushina. I tried to help him in however way I could, just like Sarutobi-sensei…all I ask for is forgiveness and a chance to redeem myself now that my workload of being a spy for Konoha has lessened considerably", he said with narrowed eyes. He was tired of being lectured about this and that….he was not perfect alright! And there was this stupid prediction of the great elder sage and his search for the child of prophecy. When he had found about Nagato possessing the Rinnegan, he was sure that the kid was the supposed child of prophecy who would bring peace to the world of shinobi and put an end to this constant chain of hatred, pain and revenge.

When the kid had died as informed by one of his summons whom he trusted completely, he had lost hope of ever finding the child of prophecy. And then he had found Minato, a genius who came once in generations but he too died thirteen years ago to save the village. So considering all the events, he began to doubt the great elder toad sage's prediction and had begun to believe that true peace can never be found as long as the system of shinobi exists. And suddenly out of nowhere, his godson activates the Rinnegan, igniting his long lost extinguished hopes that the child of prophecy indeed exists.

'_A jinchuriki…..son of one of the strongest shinobi & kunoichi in the world…..someone who doesn't give up no matter what happens, someone who's stubbornness of not accepting defeat, someone who possesses the legendary Rinnegan, someone who has beared the scorn & hate of thousands of people and still comes out of it with a smile and most importantly…. my godson. Naruto, if you aren't the child of prophecy then I will truly believe that there is no such thing as peace'_, thought Jiraiya as he gazed at Naruto in a daze while Kushina watched him quietly. She did understand that Jiraiya had his own share of misery in his life, so she just decided to keep quiet and let it slide seeing as he did care for her son and it was mainly Naruto who would decide whether to accept Jiraiya or not.

Meanwhile Anko stood up a bit shakily as she was low on chakra and stood besides the pair while Jiraiya have her a nod of acknowledgement with a smile and got a huff in return making him chuckle.

"Oh c'mon Anko-chan…are you angry with me too?", said Jiraiya with a fake hurt tone in his voice making Anko & Kushina roll their eyes.

"Ramen…..ramen", the group sweatdropped as Naruto continued to mumble.

"I guess he really takes after you Kushina", said Jiraiya with a smile while Kushina nodded with a fond smile as she held him tighter to her while Anko looked suspiciously at Kushina & Naruto.

'_Guess we were right after all…there IS something lovey-dovey going on between these two, but that was expected considering how much Kushina-nee loved him even before he was born. We always thought that if the age difference was not much, Kushina-nee would've fallen flat for him…..and fate does play a cruel joke sometimes….oh well, there's another addition to Naru-kun's group I guess…..and we have to get back at him for pranking us…oh hehe, who better than to consult Kushina-nee about this, it's time to tell who's the real prankmaster of Konoha'_, thought Anko with a smile before her stomach groaned making her blush in embarrassment while Kushina chuckled.

"Oooh…..are you hungry Anko-chan? Do you want me to fill you up?", said Jiraiya with a perverted grin but before Anko could kick his ass, Kushina beat her to it by kicking Jiraiya across the village.

"PERVERT!"

And there went the flying projectile form of the legendary sanin: Jiraiya with a bruised jaw as he crossed the village.

"That idiot…let's go Anko-chan, we should get something to eat, Naru-kun is hungry too", said Kushina while Anko gave her a pouty expression.

"Can we eat dango this time Kushina-nee-chan? Please?", pleaded Anko with puppy dog eyes making Kushina smile at her occasional childishness making her sigh as she chuckled.

"Alright Anko-chan….let's go", said Kushina with a smile while Anko whooped with joy before the trio shunshined out.

**Konoha: Gohan District: Dumpling's Palace**

"Ah…..this is what we call heaven….stomach full of delicious dango", said Anko with a grin as she patted her stomach while Naruto too sat there, fully filled but had an annoyed expression on his face.

"I'd say ramen is still the best", he said making Anko glare at him as he glared back causing sparks of electricity to form between their eyes while Kushina just sweatdropped at their antics as she continued to slowly eat the dumplings, she wasn't that hungry after all.

"Can it you two….stop acting like kids", said Kushina with a glare making them stop immediately as they still glared at each other. We find the trio sitting around a table in a restaurant, which was filled with civilians & shinobi who too were either eating or just chatting with each other, and hence the reason Kushina had made Kurenai apply a high level genjutsu on her this morning so that those who didn't knew that she was alive would see Kurenai in place of her. Meanwhile, almost all the civilians & shinobi there were staring at Anko with wide open mouths. She was an ice-queen, usually had a cold expression on her face and today, she was acting like a giddy teenager, well she was a teenager but usually didn't act like it. Several decent males had blushes on their faces, entranced by her bright smile which they had seen for the first time while Kushina's genjutsu just showed them a typical cold-faced Kurenai.

However, there were perverts in there too but the trio was ignoring everything else except each other. Several civilian females had blushes on their faces along with hearts in their eyes as they stared dreamily at Naruto while occasionally glaring at Anko & Kushina, probably not knowing about him being a jinchuriki. But Naruto was getting his share of the glares too as the males gazed at him hatefully for his presence as well as sitting with two hot women and possibly corrupting them, he had come here for the first time and it seemed like no one (mostly males) liked his presence except the owners, who knew Anko and didn't held any hatred or grudge towards him.

One bold pervert though stood up from his seat and went to stand in front of Naruto, shadowing his sitting form while Naruto continued to ignore him whereas Kushina & Anko had different reactions as they narrowed their eyes at him.

"Hey you trash…..what do you think you're doing here? Outcasts are not allowed here….and you are no exception, so why don't you just scram and let me take care of these two beautiful women", he said with a perverted grin at the end as he stared hungrily at Anko's form making her cringe in disgust. Just as Kushina & Anko were about to stand and make him lose his nuts, Naruto beat them to it by elbowing the guy where his hardened junior was located very hard, making his eyes bug out in pain while all the other guys cringed at the blow. However he didn't stop there and delivered a quick blurry jaw-crushing uppercut to the pervert making him fly off the ground and crash on a table, the littered food decorating his fucked up form.

All of the people sitting there almost shit themselves when they felt monstrous killing intent flowing in waves, they turned their heads to see Naruto standing with an enraged expression on his face while Kushina & Anko too had stunned expression on their faces.

"You insult me, call me names, spit on me…I can ignore you. BUT IF YOU THINK THAT YOU PERVERTS CAN PICK ON THESE WOMEN JUST FOR YOUR SICK PLEASURE, THEN I DARE YOU DO THAT AGAIN! THE REACTION FROM ME THIS TIME WOULD BE** MUCH WORSE!**", he said with his voice becoming demonic, his eyes turning red for a moment further scaring the shit out of them as they hurriedly left the place while the females looked at him with dark red blushes, probably thinking that he was defending them too.

Meanwhile Kushina & Anko too had tomato red blushes on their faces to see Naruto defending them, they never knew that he was so protective of them. Yeah, he adored his precious people, but they had no idea that he would go to this length for them.

'_Naru-kun…'_, both thought simultaneously with a smile as they watched him, their hearts bursting with happiness & joy.

'_You're my knight….aren't you Naru-kun?'_, thought Kushina to herself with a giggle snapping Naruto out of his anger when he heard her melodic voice. Calming himself down, he sat back with his arms crossed, an annoyed look on his face while Anko just kept glancing at him, her love for him all the more increasing when she saw him stand up for her & Kushina.

"Something on my face Anko-chan?", he asked with a serious expression while Anko jerked her head, a blush on her face as she smiled nervously.

"N-No..nothing Naru-kun", she said with a smile while Kushina just wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck from behind, both of them not having seen her get off her chair.

"Aww…..you will protect us, wouldn't you Naru-kun?", asked Kushina with a smile as she rubbed her cheek fondly against his, making him blush while Anko giggled at him. Wanting to get out of this embarrassing situation, he shunshined out of her grip in a puff of smoke to stand on the other side of the table making Kushina & Anko pout at him.

"Let's just go & resume our training", he said with a cough to compose himself as he started walking out while Kushina & Anko snickered at his back, making his eyebrows twitch for Ayumi too had apparently thought what he did was cute.

"_That was so nice & cute of you Naruto-kun…would you do that for me too if I was in danger?"_, asked Ayumi in a childish voice making Naruto just want to go in there and kiss her into the oblivion, but settling for looking annoyed. Though he didn't understand, what the fuck was so 'cute' about what he did? His blood had boiled at seeing that man's disgusting stare, the way he was seeing Anko & Kushina made him just want to break every bone in his body. Although he himself sometimes acted like a pervert, but that was only in the presence of Kushina, Ayumi, Anko & Kurenai. He liked them very much, for their personality, for their own traits & quirks which attracted him to their soul, and not just their body. But the fact that they were all hot was just an added bonus to him, but not affecting the fact that he liked them for just who they were.

"_Ayumi-chan…you're the strongest bijuu in the world, why the hell would you need my protection?"_, he asked with irritation, also noticing that an Anbu had poofed in behind him and was talking with Kushina & Anko about something.

"_Oh I don't know….maybe from the Akatsuki who wants to take me away from you…I can't live without youuuu"_, she said again childishly making Naruto blush, his heart soaring with an emotion he couldn't describe, but it was positive that was for sure.

'_What's this….feeling?'_, he thought as he shook his head to compose himself.

"_Don't worry Ayumi-chan, I wouldn't let those bastards take you away from me…..I would never leave you"_, he replied honestly with a determined smile while it was Ayumi's turn to blush as she too felt her heart leaping with joy at his declaration.

'_And I would always protect & love you Naruto-kun….just you wait'_, she thought with a smile as she decided to keep quiet for now seeing as there was a commotion going in the village, streets filled with people who were all heading towards the hokage tower making both of them confuse as to what was going on.

"Naru-kun…", he turned to see Kushina & Anko looking at him with smiles.

"It's time to announce Kushina-nee's arrival to the villagers…we should go", said Anko with a grin while Naruto's eyes widened even if more a second before he smiled back.

"Oh…well um…..you see, well I just don't feel like going you know…..so you guys should go. Besides I have some work to do….", he said with a fake smile which Anko & Kushina immediately picked making them frown.

"Naru-kun….what's the matter?", said Kushina in a concerned tone while Naruto just shook his head, turning away from them as his back faced them.

"Just go Kaa-san, Anko-chan…they would be happy to see you. I don't want to ruin the mood by being there", he said in a sudden emotionless tone making Kushina's & Anko's eyes widen.

"Shutup Naruto! Don't you dare talk like that!", said Kushina with narrowed eyes while Naruto just ignored her.

"It doesn't matter if I talk like that or not….it's just the truth and you know it. For the villagers & the shinobi alike, you have just returned to the village after thirteen years, and I don't want them to hate you immediately. You have done so much to gain their respect & recognition, and I don't want that to be ruined just because of me…..just because of you associating with me publically", he said, his voice getting colder while Kushina was on the verge of tears, her heart tearing at the fact that her son has to bear such burden, such large amount of hate, he was only thirteen years old for goodness sakes.

'_Damn you Minato! Damn you…look how much my son has to bear….damn you'_, she thought before suddenly taking Naruto in a tight hug from behind, a few tears streaming down her cheeks while Anko just continued to watch them with a sad expression. She understood perfectly what Naruto was feeling right now, she had gone through it, but now she was much accepted in the village because of her elite jounin status and the fact that she was an ice queen, she was recognized much more than before while Naruto status was still the same.

"Naru-kun…please..don't talk like that…it hurts me. Please, come with me…we will bear this together, I don't care about recognition or respect, I just want you…if they hate you, then they have to hate me too", she said in a choked voice, her arms around his form tightening while Naruto had his eyes shadowed with his bangs.

"No…I can't come Kaa-san. That's the main reason….I don't want them to hate you. You don't know the pain of being a jinchuriki, especially mine…..and I would never subject you to that EVER, if that means keeping distance from you in public until I'm recognized….then so be it", he said in a monotone voice as he forcefully got out of the hug and started to walk towards the exit. Kushina grit her teeth, tears falling on the grouund as she clenched her fists by her side, her frustration rising that Naruto was dealing with such a heavy burden alone.

"Why are you being so selfish? Why can't you let me help you…WHY CAN'T YOU LET ME BEAR THIS BURDEN WITH YOU NARUTO?", snapped Kushina, her tears falling while Naruto stopped just before the exit, the streets now becoming empty as the owner too had gone.

"Ayumi-chan is not a burden….she's a gift to me from my father on my first birthday….that's how I see it. It's just that some don't like this gift, some hate it, some want it for their own purposes & some see it as a curse….it's all about how you see it….Kaa-san. It's probably the best gift, which I cherish & love with all my heart….which will help me defeat Akatsuki and the mastermind behind the events thirteen years ago" , he said quietly making Anko's & Kushina's eyes widen. Turning around, he had a grin on his face, his eyes closed while tears were streaming down his face.

"If protecting my precious people is being selfish….then so be it. And as to why…it's because I love you….Kushina-chan, Anko-chan", he said, his grin turning into a smile while Kushina's & Anko's eyes were as wide as they could get, stunned at his declaration. Their mind and heart still processing what he had said…making sure what they heard was true. Meanwhile Kushina was stunned, Naruto had called her by her name for the first time…..her heart filling with unexplainable happiness beyond words….heat rising to her cheeks when her mind registered that he had called her 'Kushina-chan'. Anko too was feeling such foreign emotions….such happiness…was that how you felt upon hearing those three words from the one you loved?

"And besides…", he wiped his face with his forearm, "…one day, they will recognize me…they will love me, just like you Kaa-san…and I promise you that we would stand next to each other proudly, with smiling faces as we gaze upon the village", he said while grinning widely before exiting the restaurant, leaving a still stunned but-happy-beyond-words pair.

**Timeskip: Thirty Minutes Later: Konoha: Team 7's Training Grounds**

Here we find Naruto laying on a grassy slope, his eyes closed with a serene expression on his face. There was a light comforting breeze flowing rustling his hair & clothes a bit while he just seemed to lay there motionless, as he was in his mindscape with Ayumi while Kushina's announcement of her arrival was going on.

**Naruto's Mindscape**

Naruto had his head again in Ayumi's lap who was sitting under a large Sakura tree, it's pink petals falling on their forms and around them, truly making it seem like heaven, trees surrounding them. It was night time in his mindscape with the moon shining brightly, lighting up the forest in whose one of the clearings, both of them were present. Their forms were surrounded with several animals, playing with each other, their sounds sounding music to Naruto. Most of them were so cute that it would make almost all the females squeal 'KAWAI!', which were requested specifically by Ayumi making Naruto sweatdrop at the time, cause he didn't expect the strongest female bijuu to behave like every other normal female. The present scene was so majestic that sometimes it made Naruto think that how come being a jinchuriki is a curse, he could bear the usual shit with the villagers if this was what he got in return.

But other than that, Naruto had come to his mindscape or rather Ayumi had pulled him in and had immediately hugged him, cuddling with him to show her support as she had held him tight while he released some tears. She knew how much broken he could get from time to time seeing as he had to constantly bear such pain, and wanted to help him every time he felt down, even if it was the slightest bit. Meanwhile, Naruto was playing with Ayumi's tails which he had two or three of them held to his chest while Ayumi was smiling at him fondly, her hand tracing his face as she affectionately held him to her.

"You know Ayumi-chan….thank you very much…you don't know how much you're precious to me. I've been holding myself up since I could remember….but I guess I was finally reaching the limit and you're constant support has helped me so much….thank you", he whispered with a smile as he hugged her tails closer while she had a blush on her face, warmth spreading through her heart at the fact that he was recognizing her efforts, appreciating it, something which he himself was longing for from the villagers and other shinobi. Though most of the shinobi were neutral towards him, except maybe the clan heads, no one accepted him, his die hard efforts, he was only a dead last for them until now.

"No….it's thanks to you Naruto-kun that I'm this happy even when I'm sealed in you", she said after kissing his cheek, a blush on his face as he smiled back before a look of confusion came on his face.

"Huh….you're happy to be trapped inside of me….how come?", he asked with confused eyes making Ayumi giggle at him.

"Hehe….just look around you, isn't this like heaven? Well it is….atleast for a demon like me. Add to the fact that living here makes me feel closer to you", seeing his confusion increase, she continued.

"This is your imagination Naruto-kun…..I'm living in a world created by you…..I want to live by you. But that doesn't mean that I don't want to get out of the seal…...for that will prevent Akatsuki coming after you", she said while Naruto frowned.

"And risk your life….no thanks. Even if you're the strongest bijuu in the world…..who knows that mysterious man will appear again and make you go into rage and do what not…no, I will not let that happen. I will protect you!", he said with determination while Ayumi just sighed in defeat, it was no use anyway arguing with him when he put his mind to something. Lifting his hand, he cupped her cheek making her blush while she gazed into his sapphire blue eyes, getting lost in them as she leaned into his touch.

"I mean it Ayumi-chan…I will not let those bastards touch you because…", he just smiled at the end making her frown.

"Because?", she asked eagerly, anticipation showing on her face before both of them felt a somewhat familiar chakra source approaching Naruto on the outside making Ayumi curse inwardly. Getting up, he watched her down expression, an amused smile on his face as he dusted himself lightly. Bending down, he lifted her chin as her beautiful flawless heart shaped face reflected the moonlight, making her look like a goddess all the more.

Her heart was thumping in her chest, a pink tint on her cheeks while Naruto's eyes were shining with mirth & brightness which she loved so much.

"Because….I love you Ayumi-chan", he said with a smile making her eyes widen, tears welling up in her eyes. Leaning closer, he kissed her lightly on the lips, their lips brushing against each other softly making sparks fly throughout their bodies as Ayumi's heart bounced & pumped with heavenly happiness. Releasing her, a dazed expression on her face, he spoke enthusiastically.

"Always remember that!", he grinned foxily, again leaning down & kissing her nose before vanishing from his mindscape leaving a stunned Ayumi under the shining moon.

**Outside Naruto's Mindscape: Team 7's Training Ground**

Slowly opening his eyes, he had never felt so light & happy in his life, except maybe when he had met his mother and found that she loved him. He had his moments, but confessing his feelings to not one, but to three of whom he loved, it felt great! A smile gracing his lips, though he lifted his head when his form became shadowed.

"May I join you Naruto-san?", said one familiar red head while Naruto just nodded with a smile as he patted a spot besides him.

"So Mizu-", he stopped mid-sentence when he saw her glare at him, which he responded to by smiling nervously.

"So Mei-san…I'm surprised that you're not attending Ka….Uzumaki Kushina's arrival ceremony", he said with a look of confusion on his face while Mei just looked at him, sadness in her eyes as she smiled at him. This was a part he hadn't seen from her, this smile was the true one….he could tell that, his cheeks red as he stared at her beautiful face. Lying beside him, closer than what would be considered as a level of acquaintance, she stared up into the blue sky.

"So….I didn't notice it yesterday…but your faces do match up, I should have known", she said with a smile as she continued to stare upwards, as if watching clouds just like Shikamaru while Naruto's eyes were as wide as they could get.

'_What is she talking about….does she know?'_, he thought as he gulped nervously.

"Should've have known that a prodigy like you….must be the son of the famed Uzumaki Kushina", she said making his breathing hitch in his throat, a stunned silence following her statement.

"H-How?", he asked after a while with an astonished look on his face while Mei just watched him with a soft expression.

"Don't worry….Naruto-san, I wouldn't tell anyone. I heard your discussion back at the restaurant….I'm sorry, I didn't mean to but I couldn't pry my ears off once I heard her screaming", she said while Naruto just closed his eyes, trying to process the situation, what should he do now? This was so not happening to him! The reason he wanted no one to know about Kushina being his mother was because the fact about him being romantically involved with his mother, even though they were no longer biological related, would tarnish his already fucked up reputation not only in Konoha, but across the elemental nations…..well, that's what his thoughts were upon this matter.

And although, in the world of shinobi incest wasn't particularly frowned upon, but him being a jinchuriki changed a lot of things. For one, the first thing the villagers would think of was that he had corrupted their living legend, and would turn more violet not only against him but also against Kushina, thinking that she was under the control of the demon. The civilians weren't shinobi, so their thoughts usually followed no logic but mass & collective biased views which couldn't be changed easily. And now, if she had listened to their conversation, then surely she would have heard his confession.

"I didn't know that you had hots for your own mother", she said with a giggle.

FUCK!

"Ehm…well….you see, the Rinnegan changed my DNA completely, so you can say that we are no longer biologically related", he said with a nervous smile making Mei continued to giggle.

"You don't have to worry….even if you were biologically related, I still would have had no problem with it", she said with a smile making his eyes widen but he just settled to keep quiet about the matter.

"Naruto-san….what you're doing is hurting you, your mother & your loved ones", she said seriously making him look at her in confusion.

"You don't have to shut yourself completely….you don't have to hide your pain, especially from your loved ones, cause that will make them feel that they are not trusted enough…that they are not close enough to you and in the process would hurt them. What you did today hurt your mother tremendously….and you hurt yourself too", she said making him narrow his eyes at her.

"I only did that to protect her!", he growled while Mei just looked at him in sadness.

"Yes…..and that was very thoughtful of you, but I think sometimes a person's thoughts are needed to be bent by someone else. As much as I don't like to say this Naruto-san…..but she doesn't need your protection from physical harm….she's a kage level kunoichi who'll give me a run for my money in a one on one battle….even if the villagers turn against you & her, she can take care of them without even breaking a sweat. But what she needs from you…what she desires from you is love…and emotional protection, it was clear in her eyes when she was pleading to you, though the way you pushed her away hurt her emotionally but at the same time your confession made her feel loved and happy inside", she said while gazing upwards whereas Naruto had a thoughtful expression on his face.

"What I'm trying to say is that you let her enter into you….let her break through your shell…let her share your pain…and I'm saying this for Anko-san too….cause she too has suffered if I'm not mistaken because of the curse seal….that's all I had to say. Besides…it's not like I'm a philosopher or something, but I just wanted to give a friendly advice and say goodbye….Raikage too has left the village you know", she said with a smile as she stood up while Naruto nodded at her. He knew that they would have to leave considering that they had their own villages to run.

"But…..you will come after one month, wouldn't you?", he asked with an eager expression making Mei grin at him.

"My…..would you miss me Naruto?", she said with a mischievous grin making him blush in embarrassment.

"W-Well….I will….Mei", he said with a stutter while catching Mei completely off guard as he grinned at her, both of them now dropping the polite formalities.

"You have helped me….usually no one even bothers with me, but you…a complete stranger who must have had loads of other things to do rather than give friendly advice to me..so you are now one of my precious people…it does not matter to me if you're the Mizukage or a genin", he said with a smile while Mei had a light blush on her face as she smiled back at him, her true smile which looked so serene & peaceful. He was sure that that smile was really dangerous and could make men follow her like puppies wagging their tails.

Though his expression turned into a confused one when he saw do a half ram seal followed by some unknown handseals, before her right hand was covered in bright orange-yellowish flames. His eyes widened when she extended her hand towards him, a smile on her face.

"This…is the Terumi clan's way of sealing a strong bond of friendship Naruto. Don't worry…..these flames wouldn't hurt you….rather they act as conditional barriers. If these flames deem you fit to be a really close friend of mine…then your hand would pass through them harmlessly, or it will just feel like your hand is touching a barrier if you're not deemed fit…no harm done", she said while smiling whereas Naruto eyes widened at her explaination, he never knew such things existed.

"And the best part is that….whenever a Terumi was born in the past, an Uzumaki would apply a seal on him/her which gives us this ability to determine one's nature", she said while Naruto just looked at her in a 'you-gotta-be-fuckin'-kidding-me' way.

"The Uzumaki clan & the Terumi had healthy relations with each other….so now you understand…..technically, some days ago…you & I were the last of the once great extinct clans", she said softly while Naruto nodded with a smile as he slowly extended his right hand towards her ignited one.

His hands finally reaching the flames, his eyes widened when it passed through without any harm and shook her right hand gently, while Mei's face lit up with a bright smile.

'_Great! He passed the test…I guess the seal does recognizes him as a potential mate….though I feel guilty for lying to him about the friendship part…but this was a bit personal'_, she thought with a blush but what happened following their hand-shaking completely took both of them by surprise. Tendrils of flames started to rotate around their now glowing yellow hands as wind began to rustle around their forms.

"Wh-What's happening?", he asked in a bit of panic as Mei too had widened eyes.

"I..I don't know Naruto", she said as the now the harmless flames completely covered their stunned bodies, igniting their forms while the bright tendrils continued to rotate around their hands, both of them speechless as they just waited for something to happen, not daring to release each other's hands. Slowly, but steadily the flames receded back to their hands before they died down until there was only a glowing symbol left on both of their hands.

"W-What…the hell just happened?", asked Mei as they released their hands for their eyes to go wide when they noticed the yellowish-orange glowing symbols on their palms. Mei had the typical swirling sign of the Uzumaki clan on her hand surrounding which were nine tails of red colour.

Meanwhile Naruto had the sign of a typical katana which looked to be ignited on fire as it's blue metal was covered in transparent yellowish-orange flames while it's black sheath looked to be drenched with lava. Both of them watched their marks in wonder which continued to glow for a while before they vanished or rather became transparent with the glowing died down.

"What….was that?", he said with a confused expression before he sweatdropped when Mei looked at him with the same lost expression, though she had a blush on her face as she somewhat understood the meaning of what had just happened.

'_It's reaction was so strong…..oh my god…is this a mate mark?_', she thought with a blush upon understanding the significance of these unexplainable events before she realized that they were getting late.

"Naruto…..I'm happy it chose you…but I have to go now, and I hope that someday you'll visit Kirigakure…I'm sure you'll like it", she said with a smile while Naruto smiled back sheepishly as he scratched the back of head.

"Sure…Mei. I would love to come to your village….I guess I'll see you in a month then, cause I'm gonna kick some serious ass and get much stronger", he said boldly with a smirk while Mei nodded with a grin of her own.

"I'm looking forward to it then Naruto…maybe then we can spar and see if you can match upto a kage", she said with a sweet smile while Naruto paled at the mention of fighting a kage as he remembered the uber ass-kicking he got from Kushina.

"I..I don't think I'm ready for that yet…but rest assured that I'll be much stronger and maybe I'll be able to stand up against you", he said while she giggled at him.

"Don't worry Naruto…you're already a genius to be so strong at this age. I'm sure when you reach my age…you'll be like, possibly the strongest shinobi in all of the elemental nations", she said with a smile as she walked upto him and hugged him gently while Naruto although surprised, hugged her back.

"Take care Naruto….and don't let anyone make you doubt yourself…and always keep your loved ones close, for they give you the strength to fight the hard times of your life", she said as Naruto just took in what she said to his heart. Releasing him, she waved to him before vanishing in a swirl of water while Naruto had a fond smile on his face.

"Sayonara Mei…..Arigatou", he said with a smile as he gazed at his right palm, which had the now invisible mark on it.

'_And I guess…we have found another addition'_, thought Ayumi with a smirk.

**Timeskip: Around 9 PM: Konoha: Naruto's Apartment**

After Mei's departure, Naruto had trained the whole day or rather had started reading the sealing books which Kushina had gave it to him in the morning, before his training. Completely mesmerized by the phenomenal art that was fuinjutsu, he completely lost track of time and now was standing in front of his apartment door, a nervous expression on his face.

'_I hope Kaa-san is alright…but…what would be her response to what I said….will she even talk to me'_, he thought as he started to doubt himself.

"_Nothing like that would happen Naruto-kun….I assure you that she too loves you..I saw in her eyes…I know her too well, you just go in and STOP BEING A COWARD"_, yelled Ayumi while he grumbled to himself in his breath as he slowly turned the knob and entered his apartment only to be blown aback by what awaited him. The lights were on to which he had suspected that she might have had slept because it must be a tiring day for her. On the dining table, there were like dozens of bowls of ramen, which he just by watching them could tell that they were all of different varieties and flavours making his mouth water.

"Welcome home…..Naru-kun", upon hearing the familiar angelic voice which he loved so much, he looked up to see Kushina standing there with a silky apron, which did nothing to hide her curves and her generous bust.

"K-Kaa-san…", he stuttered in surprise as she smiled back at him sweetly making him blush.

"D-Did you made all this?", he asked while she nodded.

"Yeah…you love Ichiraku's ramen…but my version isn't that bad too", she said with a giggle while his eyes became teary upon seeing that she did so much for him….even after being so tired..she must have been tired.

"Oh….and I talked to jiji…he said that he would give us a brand new luxury apartment in a couple of days to live in. And also….Kakashi said that he too wanted to train you, so from tomorrow, you're training schedule increases. Also, I think it's time that you meet your godfather tomorrow…..and I want to give you a summoning contract that made our clan a force to be dealt with along with our sealing. And-", she was interrupted when Naruto suddenly ran upto her and hugged her tightly to him, making her blush which turned into an expression of concern when he started sobbing.

"I'm s-sorry K-Kaa-san…I'm an i-idiot…I'm s-sorry", he said while sobbing as Kushina rubbed his back with a worried expression.

"Naru-kun….what's wrong? Please tell me…sochi", she said as Naruto held her to him tighter than ever, not wanting to leave her.

"Y-You're doing….s-so much f-for me…and a-all I d-do is h-hurt you", he said while Kushina too hugged him, as she caressed his back head tenderly.

"That's not true! You never hurt me…and you deserve everything that I do for you, if not more!", she said forcefully as Naruto released her to look back in her soft eyes while Kushina wiped his tears with a loving expression on her face, whereas Naruto just took in every ounce of her godly facial features before his eyes rested on her enticing lips, which were pink, so luscious & wet.

'_Should I..'_, he thought while Ayumi, as if reading his thoughts, spoke.

"_Go for it Naruto-kun"_, she said while quietly giggling perversely to herself.

"_But what if she.."_

"_JUST DO IT YOU IDIOT!"_, he heard her scream before he, without thinking, leaned in closer making Kushina's eyes widen as she saw his lips coming near hers.

"Naru-kun…", she spoke softly, her lips parting slightly while her heart started to beat faster, of which Naruto took the opportunity & leaned in quickly, both of their lips now touching as it sent alarming pleasurable bolts throughout their forms. Being somewhat experienced in kissing now, he started to rub his lips softly against hers as Kushina just closed her eyes, before wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him closer & deeper into the kiss. As he continued to attack her hungry lips, he bit lightly on her lower lip making a throaty moan escape her before he sucked her lower lip vigorously while both were breathing heavily.

'_Kami….her lips are so soft…and they taste so good too'_, he thought as he continued to kiss, occasionally parting his lips from hers before attacking them with new vigour as he cupped her cheeks.

'_Naru-kun…oh Kami…I'm really getting turned on…why does even your slightest of touch sends me over the edge'_, thought Kushina as now both of their bodies rubbed against each other while Naruto pushed her against the wall as they continued to kiss each other, none wanting to stop as they hungrily tasted each other with Kushina's breast rubbing against his muscled chest increasing her pleasure all the more. Soon…their kissing started to get hot and Naruto knew that things were getting out of hand too early.

Begrudgingly, he released her addicting lips as he backed down from the kiss while Kushina just whimpered from the lack of contact, following his retreating lips while Naruto gently pushed her back.

"Naru-kun…please…more", said Kushina with half-lidded eyes as they both were now panting while Naruto just shook his head.

"I don't want to take things too far so soon…but….I love you…Kushina-chan", he whispered in wonder as Kushina blushed heavily at his words, him calling her by her name sent unexplainable sensations of happiness through her.

"And I love you…Naru-kun", she whispered back with a sweet smile, her cheeks red while Naruto's heart back flipped with joy as he tightly hugged Kushina to him.

"I would never leave you Kaa-san", he said with a smile while Kushina too hugged him back tightly.

"Baka…like I'll ever leave you", she said with a chuckle as Naruto smiled back.

'_I guess I will be finally meeting my godfather..but I'm not gonna forgive him, not yet for how he abandoned me…but everyone deserves a chance. But please….don't let him be a pervert too…..though I wonder what Anko-chan's & Ayumi-chan's answer will be….but I don't care as long as they are with me…..heh….this will be one long month'_, he thought with a sigh.

**Timeskip: One day before the Chunin Exam Finals: Night time: Konoha: Naruto's New Apartment**

"Naru-koi…hurry up and come to bed", said Kushina childishly, as she wore a silky pink nightgown, her voice melodic as ever making Naruto blush, who was sitting on a study table just besides a lavish king sized bed on which Kushina was laying. The table was littered with several scrolls with complex seal structures with books lying here & there on it. Standing up, he stretched his body while yawning, he had grown an inch this past month, though they didn't notice this considering that he had completely immersed himself in training.

Switching off the lamp, he slipped under the covers with Kushina who was looking at him with a pout before she burst out giggling.

"So…is your secret seal which you have been working on ready?", asked Kushina with a bit of seriousness in her voice while Naruto looked at her with a smile.

"Well…it's almost complete", he said as Kushina cuddled with him while they intermingled their legs with each other. Kushina just sighed in content, a serene smile on her face while he played with her long hair as he too embraced her, the moon shining lightly on their forms in the dark room.

"I love you Naru-koi…goodnight", she whispered softly as she closed her eyes.

"And I love you too Kushi-chan….goodnight", he whispered to her as he too closed his eyes while Kushina had a light blush on her face. Him calling her by her name, always made butterflies go crazy in her stomach.

Meanwhile, Naruto started to reminisce about what had happened in this past month, him & Kushina passionately making love with each other as he lost his virginity, his training and what he was capable of doing now….oh the Raikage, Mei and almost everybody would be surprised tomorrow.

**Aaaannnnd cut! So yeah…we are finally to the chunin exam finals arc. As we progress with the next chapter..things will be explained about the major events during the one month skip. And don't worry…the next chapter would contain NaruKushi LEMON! So yeah…everything will be explained next chapter…and also, no I haven't forgotten about Ino, Kin & Temari….their interaction too would be explained with Naruto.**

**And pleeeaaaaseeee review…the past few chapters are getting extremely low reviews. I'm trying hard but it seems it's not enough for you guys, so I'll try harder but please review people. I'm not even getting the borderline fifty reviews like I've been getting till ch-18…so yeah, I request you guys to pleeasseee review. I'm really straining my ass & fingers to type all this on phone…so yeah, the least you can do for my efforts is REVIEW! So take care you guys and I'll see you next chapter ^_^**

**N6023 **


	22. Life's a One Big Flashback

**Hellooo guys! Finally! Between the sucking assignments and other work to do which I can only summarise as a 'drag', I've been able to get this out. So I hope you enjoy it ^_^ And thanks for all the reviews...it really made me feel that my work is appreciated and motivated me to get this one out...and so on with the chapter-**

**Chapter-22-Life's a One Big Flashback**

"I love you Naru-koi…goodnight", she whispered softly before closing her eyes.

"And I love you too Kushi-chan….goodnight", he whispered back to her as he too closed his eyes while Kushina had a light blush on her face. Him calling her by her name always made butterflies go crazy in her stomach.

Meanwhile, Naruto started to reminisce about what had happened in this past month, him & Kushina passionately making love with each other as he lost his virginity, his training and what he was capable of doing now….oh the Raikage, Mei and almost everybody would be surprised tomorrow.

_'Hehe...their reactions would be worth dying for'_, he thought as he embraced Kushina's form closer to him, which made her smile as a small blush lit her cheeks while she snuggled into his warm chest, her fingers tracing circles on his skin as she revelled in his comforting & loving embrace.

A stone expression dusted Naruto's face upon remembering the day when he had met his godfather...and boy was he shocked to see the legendary sanin whom he respected the most, was his godfather. He had in the past read about Jiraiya and that how the toad sanin was a dead last just like him in the beginning, how their teams were strikingly similar and hence...Jiraiya had played a big role in his self-motivation which often pushed him for the better. He had met the guy the day after he 'cough' kissed Kushina...and the first thing he felt was pride & happiness, but after sometime, merely after seconds did he realise that this was the man who was supposed to look after him...who was supposed to ensure his safety rather than not even seeing his face. And as expected by Kushina and much to the fear of Jiraiya, he had given him a grin, an empty grin which had made Jiraiya flinch and said.

"Ah...finally got the time eh? Sorry Jiraiya-sama...but the damage has already been done and I've everything I need right in my Kaa-san here", he had almost spat, a cold expression gaining progression on his face while Kushina just had looked at him sadly, a blush on her face at his words while Jiraiya too sighed, oh well...the old sanin did expect this to happen.

And after that, Naruto had pretty much COMPLETELY ignored him and refused to talk to him...even declining his offer of training. Meanwhile Kushina had given him his space and had completely supported his decision and had only said one thing to Jiraiya.

"I'm sorry Jiraiya...but you brought this upon yourself, and you knew this would happen, he has every right to do so after all...but be patient, Naru-kun has a very kind heart, I know he'll eventually forgive you...until then, keep trying you baka'ttebane", she had said while grinning smugly which had made his eyebrow's twitch in irritation.

Though Kushina didn't let Naruto's training slip even one bit. His taijutsu training sessions always left him sore, but the real killer was always that once in a week torture session where she would mercilessly kick his ass just like the first day resulting him in becoming a live mummy. He had began to read sealing books Kushina had given him with the help of his almost thousand shadow clones and his progress went at rates which astounded even Kushina & the ice queens, who sometimes popped in to help him in training. Though the large intake of information should've given him intense headache's but his chakra was the key in immensely decreasing that factor.

And coming to the summoning contracts, he now remembered that day on which Kushina had given him her own contract.

**Flashback: The day after announcement of Kushina's arrival: Konoha: Forest of Death**

"So Kaa-san...please tell me which summoning contract I'm getting!", he almost screamed in excitement while Kushina watched him with an amused expression.

"Calm down Naru-kun", she ushered while giggling making him pout, hm...he sure was acting all funny & childish today.

Naruto's eyes danced with excitement as he saw her unsealing a scroll before opening a large scroll on which were thousands of names written, him noticing that all of them being of the Uzumaki clan, on which the latest name was that of Kushina.

"This Naru-kun...is the summoning contract for elemental dragons...one of the strongest contracts around which was also a reason, besides our sealing capabilities making us feared in the world", she said with a smirk while Naruto's eyes twinkled with excitement as he gazed at the scroll, before a look of confusion crossed his face as he lifted his head.

"Elemental?...I've read about dragon summoning contracts...but...are you implying that there are other dragons besides the ones who emit fire?", he said with widened eyes while Kushina just nodded at him with a smile.

"There are other types of dragons too...proving the common myth of dragons only capable of emitting fires wrong", she said as he nodded quietly, taking in everything she had said.

"Now...to sign this summoning contract, bite the thumb of your hand which you would use for summoning and write your name here", she said while indicating the blank spot right to where her name was written.

Slowly...his eyes were scrunched in concentration as he wrote his name while Kushina watched him write with an approving smile.

_'Hm...his calligraphy is really good...the fluency of his strokes...even with his fingers is astounding, thus creating seals should be easy for him. Well, that's an Uzumaki for you'_, she thought with a smirk before noticing that Naruto had completed writing his name and was looking at her in confusion, waiting for her to speak.

"Ahm...well, for the next part...put your blood on each of your fingertips and imprint them below your name", she spoke with an embarrassed blush as he nodded before biting his thumb again on which the cut had already been healed. Pressing his fingers delicately but with enough pressure, he retreated his hand to see the fingerprints as well as the mark glowing blue for a moment before fading back. Turning his head, he raised his eyebrows, asking Kshina about what had happened.

"Well Naru-kun...that was the scroll testing if you were an Uzumaki or not. Basically, it was checking your calligraphy...an Uzumaki has a top notch level of calligraphy which is one of the main reasons that we are excellent seal masters, and if someone else tries to write, whose calligraphy is usually not par with our clan...then the name simply fades", she said with pride in her voice while Naruto just looked at her blankly.

"Then what about those exceptional seal masters who too have good caligraphy?", he muttered.

"It's not a complete defence Naru-kun...and besides, even if that person does manage to sign this contract then the summons would cancel the contract when they come to know about him...it's just an initial defense mechanism", she said with a sigh as Naruto gave back the large scroll to her which she sealed back.

"Now here are the seals...use your Rinnegan so that you can atleast know how much chakra I'm putting", she said before biting on her thumb drawing blood, going through a couple of handseals required for summoning before she slammed her right hand on the ground.

"**Kuchiyose No Jutsu **(Summoning Jutsu)", she spoke as black tendrils of black coloured seals shot out from the point of impact before a puff of smoke appeared around her hand.

Watching the slowly clearing smoke, his eyes widened when he saw a blue dragon around Kushina's hieght, it's eyes light red with black slits, two mass tendrils on it's nose, it's teeth razor sharp, three claws in each hand, two large scaled wings, his tail swinging wildly as it looked around, a mixture of confusion but mostly surprise on it's face. Overall, the reptile looked quite intimidating with his human sized posture and it's steamy breathing.

"Who summoned me?... You?", it asked with a deep voice, which sounded like a growl when it's eyes settled on Naruto, as if irritated by being summoned by this stranger.

"I summoned you here Ri Riu", said Kushina with a smile, but her voice had an authoratative tone to it. Snapping his head on hearing a familiar voice which he hadn't heard since thirteen years ago, slitty eyes widening to massive proportions as he gazed at her in stunned silence.

"K-Kushina...", he trailed in immense surprise while his elongated jaw hung open.

"It's a long story Ri Riu...I'll tell you later", she said with s serious expression while the dragon nodded dumbly with her.

"This...is my son", she said with as much pride in her voice as she could muster while pointing towards Naruto, who had a dead serious expression on his face, while on the inside he was a bit nervous. Meanwhile Ri Riu looked at Naruto with a critical eye, as if studying him, searching his soul while Naruto too stared straight into it's light red eyes, his azure blue eyes getting colder by the second. However, Naruto was having a nagging feeling, like his mind was being read...the same feeling he felt when Ino's father Yamanaka Inoichi had went through his mind to check any mental unstabilities due to the seal or the village's behaviour towards him.

_"He's reading my mind!"_, he spoke alarmingly before he heard Ayumi's soft voice.

_"Calm down Naruto-kun...I know Ri Riu wouldn't do any harm...I know him from when I was sealed in Kushina, he has certain unique abilities amongst his species. He belongs to the water-dragon species and emits strong water jets or laser-like attacks...can be used for scouting purposes as well as aerial attacks because of it's ability to fly, has the ability to read other people's mind just by looking into their eyes...and, well there are other abilities too but let's save them for later"_, she lectured while Naruto just nodded inwardly when he felt that feeling receding away while he was surprise to see sadness and...was that pity in the dragon's eyes? This greatly angered him...he needed no one's pity...he had enough of those stares already, just as he was about to growl out to the summon, it spoke.

"Uzumaki Naruto...", Riu's voice strong, but having a bit of melancholy in it before he continued.

"You truly are the child of prophecy...I guess the vision that Fuku Riu-sama saw continues to hold it's significance...the first child of Uzumaki Kushina, wielder of the Rinnegan and holder of the strongest bijuu...indeed you are the chosen one", he said with a strong gruff voice while Kushina nodded with him whereas Naruto just looked at him sharply.

"It's Ayumi...not Kyuubi", he said while Ri Riu stared at him calculatively.

"What does it matter to you boy...this is a bijuu we're talking about...they are huge masses of evil chakra, nothing but mindless monsters", he again spoke with what sounded to be a bit of growl whereas Kushina looked at him with a surprised expression but kept quiet. Meanwhile Naruto narrowed his eyes at the summon...what did he mean that Ayumi was just a bijuu, a mindless monster? How dare he say that!

"Listen you...I don't care who you are, but don't you dare call Ayumi-chan a monster again...**EVER!**", he said with a booming voice of his own, his pupils becoming slitted as he clenched his fists, his anger so much that it surprised even Kushina & Ayumi.

_"Naruto-kun..."_, trailed Ayumi with a blush, he was defending her...her! Leaning down closer, Ri Riu leaned it's head down to Naruto's level, and Naruto could've sworn that the dragon was smirking.

"You've got guts boy...and that's all it will take in this world of shinobi...sorry though for insulting Ayumi, she's a friend of mine and I just wanted to see your reaction...seems you two are very close to each other", he said with amusement in his eyes while Naruto's anger immediately went down the drain which was replaced by a blush on his face, while inwardly Ayumi too was blushing madly.

"S-Shut up!", he said in embarrassment while Kushina giggled at him whereas Ri Riu adopted a serious expression on his face. Inwardly though, he was still coming to terms with Naruto's memories.

_'I can't believe this child shas uffered so much...these villagers are true monsters. And Suiriu-sama would himself flip when he comes to know that an Uzumaki has finally activated the Rinnegan...it has been centuries since our species has even heard about it...this boy, he has something special about him...'_, he thought while observing Naruto. Just by looking at his life he could tell that the boy was really something to have withstood all that.

"Alright Naru-kun...now you try summoning a dragon, for now just use your normal chakra", she said while he adopted a confused expression on his face.

"What do you mean? Normal chakra is always used for summoning right...are you saying that this summoning contract accepts other types of chakra too?", he said with a thumb under his chin while Ri Riu had an approving expression, if that was even readable that is.

_'Even on the brains side...this boy is something else'_, he thought while Kushina smiled at his question before answering him.

"Hai...you're right Naru-kun...this is by far the only known elemental summoning contract in the world. Here...Ri Riu is a water type dragon summon", she said while Naruto nodded as Ayumi had already informed him of that.

"I poured water natured chakra into the summoning technique and hence a water type was summoned...if I would've used normal chakra, a non-elemental dragon would've appeared which are generally weaker than elemental ones but good for scouting and easier to summon", she said making his eyes widen as he processed what she had said.

"Then if I use for example...wind natured chakra for summoning, then a dragon capable of performing wind attacks would be summoned...and if I use like ice chakra...then..", he trailed, his eyes widening as he saw Kushina winking towards him.

"Take a wild guess baby", she said with a grin as Naruto's hands started to shake with excitement as he promptly cut his thumb and the next thing Kushina and Ri Riu heard was...

"**Kuchiyose No Jutsu!**"

**Flashback End: Present time**

_'Hehe...Kaa-san & Riu's faces were to laugh upon when I straight away summoned Qinglong...even the poor thing himself looked shocked beyond belief that he was finally summoned after so many years...'_, he thought with a quiet chuckle while he noticed that Kushina had fallen asleep and was embracing him tightly to her as he kissed her forehead making her smile in sleep, mumbling something incoherent making him smile. Walking further up the memory lane, a sad smile replaced his smiling expression as he remembered how he had met Ino that day.

**Flashback**

Today, he had decided to change the scenario for once and was looking through a dense foliage for a place to train when he heard some sounds coming, and from their nature he could tell that someone was training.

Though his eyes widened when he heard a loud feminine scream erupt from where the sounds were coming. Usually, he would've just passed by as it could be a random kunoichi training but that voice seemed familiar and besides, his heart didn't have the power to just ignore somebody in pain.

Releasing the gravity seals which Kushina had applied on him, he dashed full speed through the bushes, his eyes widening when he saw a heavily bruised form of Ino with several deformed kunai & shuriken laying on the dusty ground everywhere he could see. There were several slash marks on almost all the trees while some of the trunks had fist sized craters.

_'What the hell she's been doing?'_, he thought with a frown as he saw a heavily breathing & a sweaty Ino laying in the middle of it all.

Quickly dashing to by her side, he bent down and started to inspect her injuries while she jerked back in surprise but tensed when she realised that it was Naruto.

"Naruto-kun?", she mumbled with her breathing hitched in her throat as she gazed into his concerned eyes, a stunned expression on her face.

_'He's concerned for...me?'_, thought Ino in surprise as she spoke again, blood seeping down her forehead which Naruto wiped with the sleeve of his black sweat shirt making her blush a bit.

"Naruto-kun..you..", she trailed in exhaustion as she continued to pant.

"Quiet Ino", said Naruto in a steel tone making her flinch as he started to apply his chakra to her body...encasing her whole body in a white glow due to his special chakra.

"Now would you mind telling me what were you planning to do here?", he asked or rather growled, getting angry at her. After witnessing Ino's change and the determination in her eyes to prove herself just like Hinata in the preliminaries, he had somewhat forgiven her...and besides they were just children back in the academy bullying each other, so he held no grudge towards her. Yeah, there was always this bitter taste regarding her in his mouth, now that had changed just like towards Sakura. Ino was in the rookie nine just like him, he cared for her not just as a fellow shinobi, but also as a person. He knew that she had potential and couldn't deny the fact that fact that she was cute & beautiful. Sure she acted immature at times, but that is expected considering that she was only thirteen years old, it was only him who had grown mentally at tremendous rates. And besides he just knew that she would turn into a beautiful woman when they would get older...but that was besides the point cause he couldn't imagine Ino being interested in him.

"I...I was just training", she stuttered while he sighed in frustration.

"Yeah...training? Training in the art of killing yourself...right? Why are you pushing yourself so hard?", he said making her lower her head.

"You might not know this Naruto-kun...but when everybody saw what you were really capable of...all of the genins have pushed themselves much deeper in training, crossing their limits...even Sakura, Shikamaru & Chouji too...a-and you would be surprised how much stronger everyone would be when you see them at the finals", she spoke while rubbing her left sore arm whereas Naruto just nodded at her.

"Well that's good then isn't it?", he said with a smirk while Ino snapped her head in surprise.

"W-What do you mean...it would just mean extra competition", she said in confusion while Naruto just lightly flicked her forehead making her pout.

"Ino...you have to see farther than that...if I don't become chunin this time...then there's always next time but the fact that you all are pushing yourselves increases Konoha's military strength...we guys getting stronger would mean Konoha's defense getting stronger and hence we can protect the villagers better...and I'm proud of myself that I was able to motivate you guys...that's what a hokage does..doesn't he Ino?", he said while grinning at the last part as Ino just gazed him in a whole new light.

_'Naruto...'_, she thought while staring at him in admiration, blushing when he caught her staring at him.

"S-Sorry...", she spoke quietly with a sigh while Naruto just raised an eyebrow at her.

_"What's wrong with her Ayumi-chan...she kinda looks down"_, he consulted her, hearing a sigh from Ayumi.

_"Naruto-kun...she's majorly depressed here...so don't go all flamy on her...she needs comfort right now...okay"_, said Ayumi with understanding in her voice while Naruto inwardly nodded with her.

"Look Ino...I'm sorry for bursting like that before...and not just for now, but also for how I behaved back in the forest...I think that we both got off the wrong foot, so why don't we start over, ne?", he asked with a smile making Ino blush cutely as she too smiled back.

"Here...I'm Uzumaki Naruto, it's nice to meet you", he said after extending his hand before she did the same.

"I...I'm Yamanaka Ino", she spoke with a hesitant smile as they both shook hands with each other.

_'Wow...her hands are soft...smooth, just like Kaa-san's'_, he thought with a pink tint on his cheeks while Ino too blushed as she felt his warm skin.

"Alright...so let's take you to the hospital", he said with his foxy grin making her blush increase in intensity before he suddenly, out of nowhere picked her up bridal style.

Ino could swear that she had never developed such a darker shade of red, a surprised expression on her face as she gazed at Naruto in astonishment who just gave her a smile before he took for dashing full speed towards the hospital making a feminine scream escape her due to his speed, She clutched to him tighter while he just chuckled to himself.

"_Well…..I guess…things are looking up this time….I hope Ino & I can be good friends"_, he said inwardly before his eyebrows started twitching when he heard Ayumi giggling perversely.

"_Or maybe….something more Naruto-kun?"_, she purred seductively making him blush as he chose to remain quiet while Ino stared at him in confusion.

'_Is…he blushing?'_

**Flashback End**

He smiled to himself as he now thought of how Ino & he were close to each other, not romantically mind you….but they were really close and were best friends.

"_But….somehow strangely, I don't find it weird to view Ino as one of my romantic interests"_, he involuntarily said inwardly when he heard a frustrated sigh.

"_I'm telling you….you have a crush on her….and she has more than a crush on you Naruto-koi"_, said our familiar furry tenant, her voice as soft & angelic as ever making his heart sooth everytime he heard her voice….even when she was angry or frustrated at him.

"_But….I don't think so…what if she still likes Sasuke?"_, he thought with scrunched up eyebrows while Ayumi just facepalmed herself and settled to keep quiet.

'_You show him a cool technique….he'll learn it like a sponge and when it comes to a woman's heart, he sure is a baka'_, she thought while Naruto's thoughts again randomly started to wander as he now remembered how he had met Kin & Temari.

He was injured….well more than injured you could say because of Kushina's weekly torture session and had just settled for roaming around the village that day. On Kushina's announcement, Hana had told him that she was in a very bad mood when the villagers had started asking her for the demon annihilation attacks or something….and he was shocked to hear that she had straight out yelled, well actually threatened that if anyone dared come near Naruto or harm even a speck of him, they'll get a VERY bitter piece of her. The villager's reactions were different, some were angry or enraged which was in case of most of the retired shinobi and elder civilians but it had created a doubt in the younger civilian's mind as to why she would be protecting the Kyuubi incarnation.

And he was even more shocked that some had even switched sides when Kushina had told them that he was not a demon, but just a jailer who was protecting all of them….that he should be considered a hero. After that the younger ones…especially the teenagers had started considering him a hero and even going as far as to oppose their parents & relatives. It was a huge blow to the villagers when Kushina had told them…that she herself was a jinchuriki and they knew, couldn't deny the fact that she had never….EVER harmed anyone in Konoha and had rather protected it while keeping her life on the line everytime the village needed her.

Kushina had told him herself that she didn't want the villagers or anyone else to know that he was her son except the ones who were close to her & him such as Tsume, Hiashi and other people….the reason? She just wanted their mother-son relation to be kept secret until he got more stronger, well strong enough to atleast defend himself against a kage-level shinobi…which he was clearly far away from at that time.

So while ruffling around the village, he got occasional smiles which made him felt really strange, sometimes children surrounding him for his autograph for he was keeping the 'meanie Kyuubi' away from them while getting glares as usual too. But he could feel Ayumi's sadness whenever she was called a monster, Kyuubi and other names, it really hurt him but he couldn't just tell anyone that he was talking to her, that he was her lover…the villagers would probably think that he was taken over and again go on a rampage like before. But he never hesitated in getting in his mindscape and kiss her mind out, cuddling with her, hugging her tightly to him as he showed her how much he loved her.

Now, as he was roaming around with his bandaged lower body along with his forehead, he was also getting concerned looks which he just returned by grinning foxily making their worries go away. As he had exited the populated area, he had caught Kin & Temari training vigorously….something which he hadn't expected from them, from a kunoichi especially for they were pushing themselves to the ground. And he could still remember the bright smiles on their faces when they had seen him standing there as they sparred with each other.

'_And how their faces immediately grew concerned over me when they saw me all bandaged up like a mummy'_, he thought with a quiet chuckle. He could still vividly remember Kin's face as she lunged at him & hugged him to death….repeatedly saying-"I missed you so much…where were you baka?".

And he couldn't deny…he was a baka for not meeting her for so long. Kin & him had created a special bond between themselves during the second part of the chunin exams and he considered her very precious to him, and had vowed to make her life much better…he had already planned to talk with jiji about reinstating her as a possible Konoha ninja but was disappointed when the Hokage had refused his request saying that they couldn't just snatch shinobi of other villages.

But that didn't mean he backed down…he had begun to daily check up on her for he had a suspicion that Orochimaru was somehow connected to the sound village and kept her safe from her abusive teammates whom he had threatened specifically in his most demonic voice…that they if they ever touch her in any way, he would personally castrate them. And somehow…things between Temari and him were tense, he could tell that she was hiding something, like she was under pressure. They too grew close to each other during the month…but he knew that something was bad going to happen, she was hiding something big. And that fact had motivated him to train harder while Kin & him had gotten really…much closer and now they were officially dating, just like he was dating Hinata, Kurenai, Anko, Hana, Yugao & sometimes Ayumi too. Kushina and him had just settled for cuddling with each other at nights and occasional sex either when he was in the mood or she herself, and mind you that it was torturous to withstand her seduction….it was nigh impossible for any straight man! Oh….and that brought the happiest memory of the month….that night…

'_That night….it was truly heaven'_, he thought with a blush as he kept playing with her strands of hair.

**Flashback-About mid-month of training: Konoha: Naruto's New Apartment (LEMON WARNING!)**

CRASH!

"Naru-kun…", Kushina moaned into the kiss as Naruto wildly kissed her, pushing her back against the wall while the plate in which Naruto had eaten fell off the table. It was just another harsh day of training, both of them had come late at their new apartment which they had acquired almost two weeks ago. It was a regular routine for them to eat Kushina's self-made dinner which Naruto found himself addicted to and then they would settle for kissing each other, sometimes it was sensual, passionate, filled with love and sometimes it was wild, heated & lust filled but they had never taken things far, often leaving a hungry & a frustrated Kushina, and the frustration was getting to Naruto too….thus their wild kissing, as if they were really hungry for each other.

"Kaa-san….you're so beautiful…I…love you", he said in between his vigorous kissing as Kushina too kissed him back with the same amount of passion, if not more for she too was wanting him…it had to be tonight!

"Oh Nharu-kuhn….you're shturning me…on sho mhuch", she said breathlessly as they tongue wrestled with each other…their lips & tongue melting into each other, the room filling with the intoxicating smell of their arousal as they involuntary started to undress each other, never leaving each other's lips. After sometime, he left her lips which were red, courtesy of him kissing her into the oblivion, he leaned forward further and whispered.

"I want you Kaa-san…..right now….right here….tonight", his throaty hoarse voice sending shivers down her spine, tingling her ear as she moaned, her eyes filled with lust, love & passion. Grabbing his head, she again began to make out with him heatedly….fervently tasting each other's moist cavern which tasted of ramen…making them hungry all the more. Meanwhile…if Jiraiya had taken a peak inside Naruto's mindscape, he would've died of nosebleed for we find Ayumi masturbating, moaning Naruto's name as she imagined him doing all that to herself…oh well, her time would come too.

As they continued to kiss passionately, Naruto's hands slid down to her back and started massaging her ass, a throaty moan escaping her lips which he suppressed down into the kiss as he continued to grope and occasionally pinch her butt cheeks. Deciding that they were going further today…he picked her up by her butt and started to slowly move towards the bed as Kushina & him continued to kiss, which was turning out to be their longest make-out session until now, her long hair reaching past her plump ass.

Putting her on the soft king-sized bed, they both continued to kiss for a while before parting from the kiss, breathing heavily as they gazed at each other with love in their eyes combined with lust & passion for each other. Looking her down & up…his mouth went dry as he stared at her vulnerable but extremely sexy & cute form for she too was staring at him while panting heavily, the moon shoning upon her partially sweaty but shiny skin in the dark room…making her look like a goddess to him.

"Oh Kami Kaa-san…..you look so beautiful…..I'm gonna make you mine today", he said huskily making Kushina whimper in desire for him.

"T-Then…take me Naru-kun… hurry up…I want you", she said while breathing heavily as Naruto leaned down on her with a hungry look in his eyes as he started to trail kisses on her face, her forehead, her closed eyes, her cheek, her nose, her lips, her chin…. he didn't dare leave anything as she squirmed under his kisses, rubbing his back tenderly while he nibbled on her ear making her moan. Riding down, he reached down to her neck upon which he lashed upon and placed fervent kisses while Kushina, who was breathingly heavily, her skin sweaty, tilted her head sideways to give him more access to her skin…which Naruto found extremely delicious & intoxicating. Nibbling on her neck, occasionally biting it, extracting moans from her he gave several hickeys to her neck as she moaned in approval of the mind blowing pleasure he was giving her.

'_Oh my kami….he's making me feel so good so early…..Naru-kun….what would happen when we get to the main deal'_, she thought in anticipation as pleasurable chills continued to surge through her body.

"You are mine Kaa-san….you'll always be mine….say it Kaa-san…I want to hear from you too", he said with a smirk while Kushina whimpered from lack of contact of his lips on her skin.

"I….I'm yours Naru-kun….I will forever be….I love you so much…you're the only…one I desire and need in this world", she said after taking a long breath, arousing Naruto further. His eyes widened when he saw some white-yellowish liquid escaping her erect nipples.

"Kaa-san….this…", he said in confusion while Kushina just smiled at him.

"It is something which I've been dying to feed you Naru-kun….something which I always wanted to feed you'ttebane…..but now you're all grown up….still though, would you like to drink your mommy's milk?", she said with a sweet smile while Naruto blushed at her words as he stared hungrily at her breasts. He had read about lactation…and knew that if the milk was not fed, it would hurt the mother in the process….and that, he couldn't possibly let happen.

"Itadakimasu", he whispered making Kushina giggle at bit as he lapped on her breasts, his mouth watering for the feast in front of him. Kneading her left breast with his left one, he started to suck on her other breast as he hungrily drank her milk, while the other mound sprayed small jets of milk. Kushina was moaned in unbelievable pleasure, squirming under his mind boggling ministrations as he continued to suckle on her plump D-cup mounds, creating suction making her moans louder.

"Naruto…..hurry up…put it in", she said, her eyes closed in pleasure as Naruto smirked at her, moving his other idle hand and started massaging her wet clit, also noticing that her pussy was shaved and had a very enticing shade of pink. Kushina arched her back in pleasure as she pushed Naruto's head deeper into her tits while Naruto continued to massage her, her moans melody to his ears as he gave full attention to her needing breasts and a starving pussy. Pushing his two fingers deeper into her hole, he started massaging her moist insides making her moans louder.

"Ahh…yes Naruto….yes!...don't stop…please….keep doing it…more", she almost yelled breathlessly while Naruto was a bit taken aback by the feeling her wet inner walls were inducing in him through his two fingers.

'_Wow…..it's like they are pulling me in further….contracting around me'_, he thought with amazement as he left her breasts for now much to her displeasure and continued to watch her pussy dripping with fluids, his hand going in & out rhythmically while her inner walls too matched the pleasurable motion of his wet fingers. Kushina was having familiar feeling of a pending release as she too started moving her hips along his fingers….desperate for a release now, especially when Naruto was the one doing it to her.

"Naru-kun…I…I'm cumMINNNGGG!", she screamed into the nirvana, her pleasure meter hitting the roofs, eyes almost rolling back as she released her honey juices on Naruto's face, who watched mesmerized, amazed at this natural phenomenon as he took a lick of his wet fingers & his lips.

'_Strangely….it tastes good….and I'd dare say it's better than ramen…but the smell... it's so intoxicating'_, he thought when he heard Ayumi scream making him sweatdrop.

'_Great! She too has cum'ed….the pervert just couldn't resist it could she?….oh man, why is she moaning my name?'_, he thought with a heavy blush as he heard Ayumi moaning his name before he zoomed out to the panting goddess in front of him, who was glowing in the after effects of a mind blowing release.

"Naru-kun….it was amazing", said Kushina with a smile while Naruto just looked at her with a confused expression.

"Um….did that really felt that great?", he said with an innocent expression making Kushina just want to ride him there till the morning.

"Oh baby….you don't have any idea…", she said with a smile while Naruto smiled back at her.

"Well….if you felt that good….then I'm happy", he said with a grin on his face, his tone honest tone making Kushina's already unconditional love sky rocket for him.

'_He cares for me so much'_, she thought as a comical lone tear slipped out of her half lidded eyes. Ayumi here….had given him, or rather had taught him about sex. He was having these urges for some time now, and she knew that it was important for him to know what was happening to him. It was difficult yes…with his constant blush which was easily matching the ex-Hinata's one….but she had gone into great detail and told him what were the active turn on common points for most of the women….but he still had doubts if doing all that would pleasure a woman, and he was a bit skeptical that she had felt so good, though the look on her face was telling another story.

"Naru-kun….make me yours….make your Kaa-san yours forever", she said, still breathing heavily, now ready for the main dish while Naruto too understood what she was saying. Meanwhile Kushina's eyes were wide as she gazed at the size of his hardened cock, her arousal sky rocketing at seeing his hard meat which was about to ravish her insides. Aligning his dick with her moist 'ready-to-go' pussy, he had a nervous expression on his face as he looked at Kushina, innocent care lurking in his love & lust filled eyes as he stared into Kushina's violet eyes, doubts filling his earlier confident mind.

"Kaa-san….are you sure this would make you feel good….um, wouldn't it like….hurt you?", he said while Kushina just rubbed his cheeks tenderly as her other hand started massaging his penis, a groan escaping him as Kushina smirked coyly at him.

"Try me Naru-kun….cause this would be something unlike you've ever experienced pleasurable", said Kushina with a seductive smirk before nodding at him as she guided his rock hard stick into her starving pussy….both of them gritting their teeth as his member finally entered her moist cavern, her inner walls squeezing as now his dick was fully inside of her while Kushina moaned in pleasure.

"Aaaahhh…..oh yes", her moans becoming louder while Naruto had his eyes widened, his expression showing immense surprise over the astounding pleasure he was receiving, the way her inner walls were squeezing around his member…almost made him cum!

'_This….this is amazing…its unreal….her insides are playing with my penis...tingling it'_, he thought as he started to move…the warm slick friction sending thunder bolts of pleasure to course through both of their bodies as he started to move in & out of her.

"Oh…Oh my….this is amazing….Naru-koi….you are amazing dattebane!", she said in her panting raspy voice while Naruto's eyes were clenched shut in pleasure. This was something he was definitely not expecting, he continued to move in & out of her as a steady pace started to develop between them. Kushina too started to move her hips in rhythm with his motion, increasing their pleasure as Naruto was groaning in pleasure which were mixing with the loud moans Kushina was making.

"Kushina-chan….it feels so good", he hissed, his voice hoarse while Kushina's heart again leaped when he called her by her name, both of them now picking pace with each other as Naruto now supported his weight with one hand while his other one began to rub & pinch her nipples, his mouth tasting her delicious milk.

"T-This is sooo goooddd….Naru-koi….call me again….my name", she whispered but Naruto had clearly heard it.

"Kushi-chan….I love you…", he said as they continued to fuck each other, lewd sounds being produced as their skins slapped against each other mixing with the slimy sounds of her fluids along with their moans & groans.

"Again…Naru-koi..again", she said as Naruto continued to pinch her nipples before he started to kiss her neck, both of their skins now sweaty.

"Kushi-chan….Kushina-chan….Kushi-hime", he mumbled repeatedly, placing tender kisses with occasionally nibbling on her delicious milk creamy skin, each time hearing her name by him making her heart flutter wildly as they continued to move against each other, their pace now much faster than before.

"K-Kaa-san…something is coming out….I-I think I'm cumming", said Naruto in a loud voice as he increased his pace further more while Kushina too was nearing her release.

"Naruto-koi….me too…..let's cum together…kiss me sochi", she moaned loudly as Naruto immediately complied gladly and kissed her passionately, their tongues wrestling with each other, Kushina's inner walls contracting around his cock as they came together.

"I CUMMMIIIINNNGGGG", both screamed as they released into each other, their orgasms hitting them in lightning waves as they held each other tighter. Kushina's eyes had rolled back as she felt his warm fluid cum fill her completely, both of them feeling heavenly pleasure as they basked in the feeling of an amazing orgasm.

"Naruto-koi….I love you so much", whispered Kushina, after several minutes when she had recovered from an all-high pleasurable release, their breathing now much even while Naruto's head rested on her D-cup breasts which were acting like pillows….VERY comfortable pillows, a fond smile on his face as he softly rubbed his head against her mounds making an inaudible moan escape her lips.

"And I love you too Kaa-san", he said as if in daze while Kushina fondly rubbed his back head, playing with his spiky locks with him too rubbing her thighs tenderly.

Lifting his head up, he grinned mischievously at her which made her a bit nervous…and excited for some reason.

"Ready for another round Kaa-san?", he asked with a grin making her eyes widen.

"Y-You can't be serious…tomorrow we have to t-train…ahh…no…N-Naru-kun", she moaned as he started to rub her nipple with his fingers, pinching them while he placed kisses on her neck, nibbling on her skin.

"Still no?", he said with his foxy grin….her heart melt at the sight.

"Oh baby….", moaned Kushina before grabbing his head, a hungry expression on her face with love & lust filled eyes, she pulled him in and started to make out with him, preparing for another round.

**Flashback End: Present time (LEMON ENDS! Alright kids…you can come out now)**

'_Oh crap!...I'm all hard now_', he thought before chuckling at the fact that they had had sex two more times, each time Kushina refusing him before giving in when he just kissed her passionately. And from then on…they frequently spent nights intimately with each other. Other than that….he did had sex with Ayumi once, when she had straight out demanded after coming out of the seal. He loved her very much too….and couldn't deny her for he too was wanting her for sometime now and was probably as desperate as her.

Other than that, he had gotten VERY close to Anko & Kurenai, making-out with them on many occasions, though he had kissed Hinata & Kin too, which were mostly sensual, love filled. But with Yugao & Hana….he didn't take things too early and was currently dating them with occasional pecks here & there and constant hugging. He knew though, with Ayumi telling him obviously, that how much they were wanting him with their blushes and all but didn't got the time for anything else with his constant training & all. So the month had mostly gone with him training his ass off…and the techniques Jiraiya, Kushina & Kakashi taught him, the way they trained him to the ground, he was sure to leave everyone's jaws hanging off their hinges by the time he was done with the exams.

_'So the party begins tomorrow…and I do have this feeling that something big is gonna happen'_, he thought with a grim expression before closing his eyes...ready to tackle anything that would come his way.

**Timeskip: Next day: Konoha: Konoha's Main Event Stadium: 10 AM**

"Now that I've explained the rules...would Hyuuga Hinata, Sabaku No Kankurou and Hyuuga Neji step forward?"

**And here was the pre-chunin exam final chapter that most of you must have found boring...but oh well, the next chapter...I think it would be something else ^_^**

**Also, this chapter must've left you with many questions (ex- summons, Anko's seal and other things), so don't worry cause they would be explained in future chapters.**

**Though personally...I'm not expecting much of a response from this chapter, but an author can dream can't he? So stay tuned for the next exciting chapter of CoMSW! (DBZ?) Take care and thanks for reading! ^_^**

**N6023**


	23. Breaking the Chains of Destiny!

**So hello my faithful readers….wow, I can't believe that so many guys and gals are liking this. ^_^ **

**But oh well, thanks for all the reviews, encouragements, PM's and support….I appreciate it. So yeah…here's the action packed chapter and with nothing else to say, let's sail the ship-**

**Chapter-23-Breaking the Chains of Destiny!**

**Konoha: Konoha's Main Event Stadium: 10 AM**

"Now that I've explained the rules…..would Hyuuga Hinata, Sabaku No Kankurou and Hyuuga Neji step forward?", announced Genma in his chakra enhanced booming voice, reverberating through full packed arena. Up there in the top most balcony were the sitting forms of the Hokage, Mizukage, Raikage and the Kazekage, all of them wearing formal robes. Behind the shadow leaders of their respective villages, stood their escorts, or rather bodyguards of the sorts.

Behind Hiruzen stood two Anbu whereas Choujiro and Ao were standing behind Mei. The Raikage having a smirk on his face, excited to see some action had Kirabi's team along with Darui, his right hand man behind him. Although smiling, Mei had an irritated look on her face as she shuffled in her seat to get comfortable.

'_I always hated this formal wear….makes me feel like an old hag'_, she thought with an annoyed expression but smiled upon seeing Naruto's battle ready form down there, standing among the 11 other genins to be competing today. The arena was filled with cheers and loud shouts of encouragement, several bets were being put on the competing contestants, overall it was quite a big event for Konoha which was now flooded with several merchants, mission seekers, buyers and shinobi from around the world.

Meanwhile we find the rookie nine except the ones competing sitting together, which were actually only three in number with Sakura, Ino and Shino cheering alongside the excited civilians, though the bug user had his own quiet way of showing support. Several rows behind them were the sitting forms of Kakashi, Kurenai, Gai, Anko, Hana, Yugao and Kushina.

"KUSHINA-SAMA! IT'S MOST YOUTHFUL OF YOU TO JOIN US", yelled Gai as he gave a thumbs while flashing his thousand times brushed teeth, making the jounins around him blink their eyes as if they were hit by a Solar Flare(DBZ). Kakashi and others though were surprised, mainly because people sitting in the stands were being loud and for once, Gai's voice sounded normal to them.

"Huh? You said something Gai?", said Kushina in confusion making the green clad shinobi fell face first on the concrete step while the ice queens minus Yugao began to laugh their asses off, their sounds mixing with the loud cheering in the arena.

"KUSHINA-SAMA! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?", yelled Gai as he cried anime tears while Kushina just looked at him in utmost confusion.

'_Do I look that cool everytime I do that?'_, thought Kakashi with a thumb under his chin whereas Anko now was patting Gai in understanding, fits of laughter still escaping her hand covered mouth making Gai's eyebrows twitch while Kushina just looked at them like they were crazy.

"I don't understand... what's there to laugh?", she asked innocently while tilting her head, further making them burst in laugher much to Gai's ire as he just settled to keep quiet…just this once. Shrugging her shoulders, the fiery kage turned her head to see Naruto standing their proudly with a smile on his face.

'_He looks so handsome today….makes me just want to…no NO! Bad Kushina! You're not a pervert! That Jiraiya…training with him has effected me too'_, she thought with a blush, wiping a bit of nosebleed making Yugao sweatdrop as she saw Kushina's dreamy expression.

'_Must be thinking of Naruto-kun….who else can induce that from her'_, thought the kenjutsu mistresswith a sigh. The ice queens had come to know or rather, their suspicions were confirmed regarding their romantic relationship when Naruto had himself told them, a lot nervously though for he was scared of their reactions. Though much to our blond jinchuriki's surprise, they had just said that they knew with a smile and that they had no problem with it. The sweet result they got was a tight teary hug from their favourite knucklehead (especially when it came to women) and a kiss to their cheeks.

Meanwhile, down there we find the 12 contestants standing in front of the proctor who strangely was chewing on a senbon, well...that's what it looked like.

In front of him stood Temari, Kankurou, Gaara whose gourd looked to be smaller than before and of a darker shade, Kin, Kiba with his partner Akamaru, Shikamaru who was muttering curses about everything being a drag, Lee who was doing push-ups while flashing his teeth like an idiot, Neji who had a stoic expression on his face, his eyes full of hate & anger as he clenched his fists, Hinata who was standing besides our last contestant Naruto with both having smiles on their faces.

Here Hinata was wearing a dark blue top which was hugging her hourglass figure, accentuating her early-blooming curves and C-cups followed by a tight black trouser giving defination to her shapely legs. She had long hair which were reaching past her shoulder blades, having grown several inches this past month while two bangs of her dark blue shiny hair were framing her heart shaped beautiful face. Coming down, she was wearing a locket which Hiashi had given her, saying that her mother wanted her to wear it. It was a royal shade of metallic blue colour which could be opened to see her mother's picture, something she cherished with all of her heart, well other than a certain blond one of course. Tied to her thighs were typical kunai & shuriken holsters with black elbow bands on her both arms, her pearl lavender eyes overflowing with determination. Overall, she was looking quite beautiful and physical appealing while emanating an aura of a kunoichi who could not be taken lightly.

Next to her was standing the smiling form of Naruto, who was looking around himself in what could be described as in a state of awe. Almost all of the young & mature females alike in the arena had blushed upon seeing him while some of the people were cheering for him too, something which he was not used to. He was wearing a black Konoha flak-jacket under which was a dark blue sweat shirt. Over the jacket, he had his typical white trenchcoat with black flames arising from it's hem while on the back, the trenchcoat had the same white coloured Uzumaki swirling sign whose background was a black flame, it's tendrils almost reaching the high collar of the trenchcoat. This time the hitai-ate was wrapped around his forehead while he was wearing dark blue shinobi pants with the same kunai & shuriken holsters. Around the waist, he was wearing a black utility belt containing several scrolls and coming down, he was wearing black shinobi sandals above which were white wrappings on his shin.

"Woah...you see this Hinata-chan? I never thought so many people would come to see the finals", said Naruto with amazement on his face as he looked around the stadium, it's rows looking colourful because of different clothes due to seeing this far away.

"Yeah...it really is amazing", said Hinata with a smile, who had strangely grown taller a few inches in just a month and almost equalling Neji's hieght.

"I repeat again...would Hyuuga Hinata and Sabaku No Kankurou step forward", again said Genma, his chakra enhanced voice booming through the arena as the rowdy crowd's cheers went down to concentrate on the coming matches.

"Um...y-yes", said Hinata with an embarrassed blush for not listening early while Neji had already stepped towards the senbon chewing proctor, scoffing at her. Hurriedly going to stand in front of Genma, everyone's eyes widened except a few at what they heard next.

"Proctor...I forfeit", said Kankurou with a serious expression while Genma just blinked at him.

"What?", he said again to make sure what he heard was right as the arena went deathly silent.

"I said I forfeit the match", said the puppet user while the other contestants except Gaara & Temari kept staring at him wide eyes whereas Naruto couldn't shake this feeling of dread that was tingling his mind since yesterday.

"Are you sure gaki? In front of all these people...are you absolutely sure?", said Genma after composing before Kankurou just nodded, a stoic expression on his face.

"I've already fought that Hyuuga heiress before and for a fact I'm a long range fighter, I know that I wouldn't be able to handle two Hyuugas", explained Kankurou making the proctor sigh.

_'Nicely done Kankurou'_, thought Baki with a smirk who was standing in one of the balconies above with other jounins.

"It seems that Sabaku No Kankurou has decided to forfeit the match...so it lefts us with Hyuuga Hinata and Hyuuga Neji", said Genma in his loud voice as the croud erupted in 'Booh's for the puppet user.

"COWARD!"

"YOU PANSY!"

"WHY EVEN BOTHER COMING HERE THEN?"

Shouts came from random people while Kankurou's eyes began to twitch as he along with other remaining contestants started to go back to the balcony.

_'I'm gonna kill Baki-sensei!'_, thought the pupet user as he continued to walk while dodging several thrown footwear and cans.

"YEAH..GO AWAY! CLOWNS CAN'T BE NINJA ANYWAY"

A vein popped on Kankurou's forehead while he could hear the snickers of the other contestants alongside him, even Temari was quietly snickering to herself.

"HEY KANKUROU FELLA THERE...I HAVE VACANCY IN A LOCAL CIRCUS HERE...WANT A JOB?", another shout came as began people began to laugh...even the ice queens & Kushina began to laugh while Naruto too wasn't left behind.

_'Yeah...I'll kill him very painfully...our mission be damned'_, thought Kankurou whose eyebrows were twitching dangerously as they neared the stands to climb to the balcony before everyone heard something from the female cheerleaders there that sent them rolling in laughter.

"KANKUROU. KANKUROU IS A SISSY...HE CAN'T EVEN BEAT A HYUUGA MISSY... WHOOO", chorused the colourful females together before the arena exploded into laughter as Mei too couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing while holding her hand up.

"Oh...AHAHAHA..s-sorry Kazekage-dono...AHAHAHAHA...b-but that's really funny..AHAHA", she continued to laugh while others too were barely in control of themselves.

"Ah...no worries Mizukage-dono...it's nice to have an entertaining crowd for once", said the Kazekage whose lower face was covered by a white cloth.

_'__Though...that was funny indeed...kukuku'_, thought our familiar Kazekage.

"Oh man...AHAHAHA...this is gold...C'MON EVERYONE! LET'S SAY IT ONE MORE TIME!"_, _shouted Anko with laughing tears in her eyes while people around her nodded enthusiastically with Kushina giggling to herself.

"ONE...TWO...TOGETHER!"

"KANKUROU KANKUROU IS A SISSY...HE CAN'T EVEN BEAT A HYUUGA MISSY WHOOOOOOOOOO", yelled almost everyboy in the stadium as Naruto too had joined in while Mei's laughter got louder with Hiruzen chuckling to herself.

"Hey...that was a good rap yo...ENKA!", who said that?

Meanwhile Temari too burst out laughing while Kankurou was having an anger attack there...barely controlling himself...he wanted to crush someone...ANYONE would do while the popped vein on his forehead was about to burst as Temari's fits of laughter got louder.

"SHUT UP TEMARI!", he shouted comically, his face enlarging like the big head no jutsu as Temari just started to laugh harder while rolling on the ground.

'_Baka Kankurou...mother too is laughing at you'_, thought Gaara in one his rare moments of extraordinary insanity.

"Alright now...enough with the jokes...are Hyuuga Hinata and Hyuuga Neji ready?", said Genma as he jumped back a bit while Hinata and Neji turned towards each other, both having serious expressions on their faces. Breathing deeply, Hinata slowly shifted into her jyuuken stance while Neji just stood there, gritting his teeth as glared at Hinata with as much hate as he could muster.

"I'm gonna crush you today Hinata...just by activating something new doesn't mean you're anything better than before", he spat hatefully, angered that his only thing left was taken away from him...his pride, pride at being the hyuuga prodigy, pride at being a prodigy that not even the genins of the main branch family could hope to surpass.

"I don't know why are you acting like this Nii-san...but I'm not the same as before", said Hinata as she hardened her expression before activating her primitive Byakugan without doing any handseals, with Neji doing the same as he too slipped into the jyuuken stance.

"I'm gonna show you that a branch member can be stronger than the main branch family...you Hinata, always cheerful, always smiling like nothing is happening around you while we...we people are treated like trash, bound for the rest of our lives to serve you! It makes me sick! You were fated to be a failure and that's...your destiny", he said before spitting on the ground hatefully while Hinata just nodded towards the proctor, her eyes becoming cold before narrowing them.

'_I'll show you Nii-san...I'm not weak as before'_, she thought as Genma brought down his hand while the crowd watched silently, the fight between the two Hyuuga prodigies beginning.

"HAJIME!"

Wasting no time, Neji immediately dashed towards Hinata as fast as he could, his eyes raging with anger while Hinata stood there motionlessly.

'_His speed...it has increased tremendously...Gai'_, thought Kakashi with widened eyes as he turned towards Gai to see him staring down with a serious expression on his face.

Reaching her he unleashed a flurry of Jyuuken strikes while Hinata began to dodge them with speeds surpising even Neji, his eyes widening as she fluently dodged each of his palm thrusts, her cold eyes never leaving him while he noticed that she was not fighting him back..but rather was only interested in dogding his blows angering him further.

"Fight me you weakling!", yelled Neji as he went for a kick at her mid-section which she grabbed before going for a palm thrust at his thigh making his eyes widen. Grabbing her attacking wrist with amazing accuracy and speed, he lifted his other foot and placed it on Hinata's collarbone area and used it as a spring board to flip back in midair while Hinata stumbled back, a bit of surprise on her face as she again regained her position while Neji landed several feet away from her, still glaring at her.

"I see you've improved drastically Nii-san...", said Hinata seriously.

"Don't act like you were stronger than me before Hinata...but no matter...I'll show you your place today", he said as he again blurred out of the civilians sight with an impressive speed burst for a genin while Hinata just followed his invisible figure, her head moving as she could see his blurry form.

'_He really has improved...his speed is really something...I bet it was Gai-sensei'_, thought Naruto with a calm expression as he watched closely.

Turning her head to follow his movements, she could see that he was trying to confuse her by producing after images as dirt started to pick up around her.

"There!", she exclaimed before throwing kunai behind her, able to see him because of her three-sixty degree vision before the kunai just bounced off. Blurring herself out of the civilian's sight, she catched the rebounded kunai before ducking down at amazing speeds for everyone to see Neji's fist where her head was just for a second before both of them vanished from the civilian's sights, dust blowing around because of their fast movements as they both continued to throw unrestrained strikes at each other, neither of them holding back. The only thing that the untrained eyes of the villagers could see was sparks of blue charka being expelled in mid-air in random directions because of the palm thrusts. Almost all of the people with shinobi alike were in states of awe and astonishment, never having seen two Hyuuga genins fight each other with such speeds...the level of the match was way above than they had expected.

"That's...really impressive", said Mei with surprise, never having seen two Hyuugas go at it while to say the truth, Hiruzen was himself surprised, not interested in lighting his pipe anymore. The Raikage had this excited gleam in his eyes, for he was getting what he enjoyed the most...hardcore taijutsu!

"Gai...did you actually put that Neji kid through all those crazy training sessions of yours?", asked Hana incredibly while the taijutsu master just nodded seriously.

"Neji is my student...he wanted to get stronger..his personal reasons aside, it was my duty as a sensei to help him...though it was difficult for him to endure all that, but he had that drive...that motivation this time that I always saw in Lee...the desire of wanting to prove yourself", said Gai, for once serious about something while Kushina looked at the match with interest.

_'That Neji kid...he's good...I kn__o__w Hinata-chan is strong...but he's matching her toe to toe...that kid really is a prodigy'_, thought Kushina as she followed their movements easily.

Meanwhile Neji was getting angrier, she was matching him blow to blow...matching his speed which he had trained so hard to achieve over the past month.

_'How can she follow my speed...she was nowhere as fast as this a month ago'_, he thought with gritted teeth before both of them flipped back to land graciously on their feet, looking at each other dead seriously.

Meanwhile the crowd was stunned into silence as they watched the glaring contest between these two...not even looking even a slight bit winded, though Naruto had a proud smile on his face.

_'Finally those hours of sparring with Hinata and giving her gravity seals are producing results'_, he thought as he gazed upon the match, where dust had surrounded the two contestants making them somewhat invisible to the people there.

_'Hm...very clever...Hinata-chan'_, thought Kushina after deactivating her Sharingan.

_'I didn't want to use those techniques so soon...but I guess now is the time...and she has yet to use the second level'_, thought Neji before a smirk formed on his face while dust blew away with the wind to reveal both of them.

Putting her hand in her holster, Hinata threw several shuriken one after another in quick succession at Neji who just smirked at the pitiful direct attack.

Fluently and easily dogding the kunai one after another, he drew out his own kunai as he began to deflect them with impressive speed and accuracy.

Though his eyes widened in immense surprise when one of the incoming shuriken trajectories puffed into smoke to reveal Hinata in mid air who was coming at him at high speeds, her eyes cold as she stared deep into his widened pupils.

_'What...but the real one is...two chakra systems...kage bunshin!'_, he finally came to a stunned realisation as she rocketed towards him. Though what made everyone's jaws drop was when she started spinning in midair, expelling blue chakra from her body as it started to rotate around her rocketing form.

_'That...impossible!'_, thought a random Hyuuga elder who was sitting with Hiashi, the latter having a proud smirk on his face. Meanwhile Neji's eyes widened considerably as he grit his teeth in concentration.

_'Have to use it now...if I'm hit with that...'_, he let his thoughts linger as he too started to rotate extremely fast, expelling chakra from his body parts just like Hinata forming a sphere around himself. From a random villager's sight, a giant blue sphere flew at blinding speeds towards another sphere before they both crashed, each of them yelling the name of the technique.

"**HAKKESHOU KAITEN! **(Eight Divination Palms of the Hand, Heavenly Spin)",they yelled in unison as a loud explosion shook the arena, forming a large crator in the middle as cracks appeared on the ground with dust & wind flowing like a tornado around the two spheres which were now fighting for dominance. Though, it was becoming clear that Hinata was having the upper hand.

_'That bitch...she's using the gravity to her advantage'_, thought Neji with gritted teeth as he pumped more chakra into the technique while the chakra spheres looked as if they were mixing with each other, their shape mingling before they started to vibrate around their centres, becoming unstable.

BOOM!

Another explosion, this time more devastating than the last one came rocketing outwards in the form of an invisible shockwave which reverberated through the arena, people struggling to remain in their seats. Past the explosion, Genma jumped towards the area which was now covered in dust revolving around the point of impact, hindering everyone's vision. No one dared to speak as they watched with bated breath, waiting for this frustrating smokescreen to vanish.

_'Hinata-chan...'_, thought Naruto with a hint of worry in his eyes. Slowly the dust screen cleared, unvieling two standing forms much to the shock of everybody.

_'They're still standing?'_, thought a random civilian matching the thoughts of hundreds of others there.

_"Wow Nibi...I have to say I'm impressed...their level of skill is easily chunin"_, said Yugito inwardly with an awed expression on her face, who was sitting with Bee, who himself was watching the match seriously, a rare feat.

_"Indeed kitten...the Hyuuga clan though was always full of geniuses and prodigies as far as I remember"_, replied Nibi while Yugito was staring at the two prodigy Hyuugas, one having several bruises with clothes tattered at several places while the other was completely unharmed...much to the shock of everyone.

_'That insolent...it was the kage bunshin who attacked me while the real was standing behind...enjoying the show!'_, thought Neji with gritted teeth as he remembered Hinata puffing into smoke just a second before the explosion had taken place. He was panting a bit, blood seeping down his lips while his jacket was torn in several places as he glared hatefully at Hinata who was looking back at him, completely unharmed, her eyes cold.

_'That explosion...the mixture of Kaiten and Kage Bunshin, it could be used as an exploding shadow__ clone__, much deadlier than the one Itachi-sensei created'_, thought Naruto with a serious expression on his face when he noticed that Ayume was asleep right now while the other contestants were watching the match in trance-like states.

"Oh man...this is such a drag...why does everyone I know has to be a prodigy", muttered Shikamaru with a sigh while Naruto smirked at the lazy nara...shaking his head at his antics.

"Now you see Nii-san...earlier I couldn't even lift a finger against you...earlier I was a quivering piece of shit just being in your presence. Look at me now...today going toe to toe with you, was this written in your book of destiny...a prodigy like you to be beaten by a failure like me? Is it just destiny or an error of coincidence in your perfect book?", said Hinata as she stood still, her eyes cold as ice.

"Shut up...just SHUT UP!", yelled Neji as he clenched his fists, his rage rising through the roofs while Hinata gained a soft expression on her face as she stared at him.

"You don't know what it feels like to be branded with a mark that sets you apart for the rest of your life...you, a Hyuuga hieress who took everything for granted, who was given everything on a silver platter just because my father was born a few minutes late! He was forced to serve the main branch...forced to give away his life just because of the actions of YOUR father!", he spat with hatred, his voice trembling with rage, hatred and frustration as he wiped the blood off his chin while Hinata narrowed her eyes at him.

"Then what do you want Nii-san? Do you wish that uncle Hizashi was born first...so that my father's life would've been taken instead...so that I was the one standing in place of you, speaking those words to you? Are you that selfish Nii-san? You yourself said that destiny can't be changed...but then why are you yourself fighting it back...isn't it the destiny of a branch family member to forever serve the main household...if destiny can't be changed, then why do you even try, why don't you just accept it...are you a hypocrite?", she said making his eyes widen as he listened to her in stunned silence.

"I may not know your pain...but I do know the pain of losing my mother...I do know the pain of being blamed & scorned for something which I just couldn't do no matter how hard I tried...everybody has his own problems Nii-san wether they be emotional, physical, social or financial...you can't just blame on the others and just sit back and accept your destiny, that's the work of a coward. Just take example of Naruto-kun, he-"

"Don't talk about him. That guy knows nothing about pain...always wearing that disgraceful smile of his, not having a care in the world...he too was offered everything on a silver platter just like the Uchiha...trained by Jiraiya the sanin, Hatake Kakashi & Uzumaki Kushina herself...even the deadlast could become a prodigy. He knows nothing about what it feels like to be glared down...to be treated differently just because of something which was done without your consent at birth, he's just a royal idiot following his delusional dream of becoming Hokage", said Neji as he scoffed at the mention of Uzumaki while the temperature dropped several degrees in the area as he finished his sentence.

"You'...Nii-san", said Hinata as her eyes became shadowed, her chakra rising while Neji quickly dashed towards her at blurry speeds, channeling more than usual chakra through his palm, making it concentrated which started to glow blue faintly.

"Why isn't she moving?", said Kurenai alrmingly, worried for her student while Kushina was staring intently at the match, a smirk etched on her face.

"**Hakke Hasangeki! **(Eight Divination Signs: Destructive Mountain Fist)", yelled Neji just as he was about to reach Hinata who was strangely standing, as if waiting for him.

Finally reaching her, he thrusted his chakra concentrated palm in her gut, sending waves of invisible chakra behind her due to the impact while she had grabbed his hand which was embedded in her gut, blood seeping down her lips as she coughed, still not lifting her head.

_'By kami...that technique...who could have taught him...Neji'_, thought Hiashi with his mouth wide open in surprise while Hanabi too, who was sitting besides her father, was watching the match in fascination.

"Match's over Hinata...you can't recover from this attack...cause this one directly attacks the core of your chakra system", said Neji with a smirk as they remained in the position while Hinata lifted her face, a cold smirk on her face sending chills down his spine.

"Surprise Nii-san", she said with a way too sweet smile making Neji's eyebrows lift in surprise and confusion as he further embedded his palm in her gut, twisting his hand as he grit his teeth in anger.

"Just accept your defeat you pathetic failure. Your destiny-".

PUFF!

His eyes widened when something puffed just beneath him...

WHAM!

The next thing he knew...he was lifted into air, courtesy of a chakra enhanced right hook by an enraged Hinata to his jaw, blood spitting out of his mouth as he went flying back.

THUD!

He fell on the dirt ground as he skidded a bit due to the force of the impact & his momentum.

_'A Hyuuga...punched_ ?_'_, thought Mei with a stunned expression on her face, matching the thoughts of EVERY person in the stadium except Hinata herself. Meanwhile Raikage had a large grin on his face while his hands were trembling with excitement.

_'I'm starting to like this girl more and more...'_, thought Kushina with a smile while the ice queens, Kakashi and Gai were having trouble picking up their jaws. It wasn't just any soft hook by a soft-looking girl...it had some serious power behind it, enhanced by chakra.

_'But still...Neji's endurance has greatly increased as compared to a month ago'_, thought Gai with a serious expression on his face while you could hear several shouts from all over the stands.

"OW! THAT'S GOTTA HURT"

"THAT BOY JUST GOT NAILED, AND THROUGH THE AIR HE SAILED...WHOOO!"

"IS SHE AN APPRENTICE OF ROCKY BALBOA (lol)?"

_'Neji...'_, thought Tenten in worry as she gazed upon her injured teammate who was slowly getting up while struggling.

Neji, getting up noticed that the two Hinata's were still standing...one injured and the other completely unharmed.

_'Hn...idiot! Just for that punch, she took my attack head on so that her shadow clone could have a go at me'_, he thought as he now stood, his knees trembling a bit, blood seeping down his jaw which he knew was cracked or most probably broken, his clothes now completely ragged as he panted a bit.

"Your endurance...it has improved tremendously Nii-san", said the injured Hinata, who was panting a bit while holding her stomach whereas Neji just ignored her.

_'Alright...she too is injured and most probably can't use her chakra due to hakke hasangeki...and I have to finish it now and conserve chakra for later matches'_, he thought, not too far away from her before slipping into a strange stance which Hiashi & Hinata recognised immediately.

_'No way...it can't be...he's learned that technique too...incredible!_', thought Hiashi in amazement while Neji smirked at the startled expression on her face.

_'That boy...he's still not getting it...but to know that technique at this age is truly an amazing accomplishment'_, thought Kushina with an amused smirk.

"I know that you learned this technique too...but unfornately for you Hinata, you can't use chakra right now", he said with a cocky smirk as he bent his head down forward, his one arm in front of him pointing towards the ground while his other arm behind him, just above his shoulder, his legs wide apart.

'_Well….I did __see__him __perform that technique__ in the preliminaries__…'_, thought Hinata with a calm expression on her face as still, both of them were standing…wind blowing across the battle arena, their hair flowing with the breeze.

"You're in the field of my divination", said Neji as he started to concentrate his chakra, one thing still nagging his mind since the match had started.

'_Why didn't she use the second level when she had the chance?'_

"**Hakke Rokujuuyonshou!** (Eight Divination Signs, Sixty-Four Palms of the Hand)", he yelled before dashing towards her at blinding speeds, chakra souring at the base of his feet, his eyes widening in his mad dash when she, the one who was standing unharmed, adopted the same stance he did a few seconds ago while the one holding her stomach stood behind, coughing some more blood.

'_Foolish….her injuries are too great to even perform that technique….and her shadown clone can't perform that technique effectively as the original one can…..oh well, let the failure try…..like always, her efforts would be fruitless'_, he thought with a sneer as she too dashed at him with equal speed, if not more than him.

'_By Kami…..these children are truly something….having such skills at such young age…now I see why Konoha is the strongest of the elemental nations'_, thought Yugito as she watched the two Hyuugas blur towards each other, unseen to the civilian crowd, the only thing they could see was dust being elevated due to their movements. Both of them reared their right arms, their palms flaring with chakra as they began their strikes.

"TWO PALMS!", Both yelled in unison.

His eyes widening to massive proportions when both of their palms collided with each other, their hands moving with astounding speed and stunning accuracy.

'_IMPOSSIBLE! HER STRIKES ARE AS STRONG AS MINE!...HOW CAN A CLONE BE THAT STRONG?'_, he thought, gritting his teeth as they watched each other with the world slowing down around them…their bodies moving in slow motion as their eyes came in contact with each other.

'_Those eyes….I hate those determined eyes..…why?…...How can she be so strong? It was in her destiny to be a failure, and then suddenly…this second level unlocks, which she hasn't even used once….Hinata….how are you defying all these odds….could it really be the work of that Uzumaki?'_, he thought as they gazed into each other's eyes, as if piercing each other's soul…doubts now filling his mind.

'_Nii-san….I'm gonna show you the power of a failure….I will change you….I will prove to you that destiny can be changed'_, she thought with determination overflowing her as they continued their strikes.

"FOUR PALMS!", came their combined shout, their movements extremely fast to the untrained eyes of the crowd as they watched in fascination at how fast they were executing the famous technique of the Hyuuga clan, their hands which were flaring blue were a blur to them as dust started to pick up around their blurry forms.

"EIGHT PALMS …..SIXTEEN PALMS…THIRTY TWO PALMS", their palms and two index fingers colliding accurately, cancelling each other's chakra enhanced strikes as they began the final set….both of their speeds increasing, giving it all in the final strikes.

'_How is this possible! Her strikes….they are so accurate and are matching me in strength and speed…what the fuck is happening here?'_, thought Hyuuga Neji, probably cursing for the first time in his life.

"SIXTY FOUR PALMS!", this time only he yelled as he went for the final strike before Hinata caught with her right hand, his eyebrows lifting in immense astonishment over such feat.

'_She caught it!'_, he thought as he tried to shake his hand out of her grip but found that he couldn't….her grip was as strong as iron while her eyes were shadowed.

"W-What the….", he stuttered as he continued to try forcing his hand out while the people watched in silence…not blinking their eyes for they would miss the blazing action that was going on down there.

"It's not over yet Nii-san…..it's not over", said Hinata as she lifted her head, his breathing hitching in his throat as he gazed into her second level activated Byakugan, which was now somewhat glowing….reflecting the sunlight, looking like a lavender-blue jewel.

'_Her eyes….two petals! What does it mean?'_, he thought before he saw the injured Hinata smiling at him while waving as she wiped off her blood.

"Bye Bye….you fell for it!", she chirped while smiling before puffing into smoke making his eyes further bug out anime style.

'_IT CAN'T BE!'_, he thought with an expression of impossibility as he gazed back at the smirking Hinata in front of him.

"Y-You were the real one all along!", he exclaimed while she smiled sweetly at him, sending chills down his spine as he again tried to get out of her grip by using his other hand to strike, which she caught too…much easily this time than before, that damned smirk all the while remaining on her face. Beads of sweat rolled down his face as invisible shockwaves excluded from her, resultant of her increasing chakra picking up dust on it's way as he continuously tried to get out her grip.

"**Toyotama Byakugan** (Luminous Jewel All-Seeing Eye)", she whispered looking him dead in the eye, her eyes cold with her smirk deadly.

'_She's building massive amounts of chakra…she never had that much chakra…..is it because of her second level?'_, he thought as anxiety rose in him, fear arising within him for something that she was preparing to do.

"Your technique is finished….but mine still hasn't", she whispered channeling chakra through both of her palms in which Neji's wrists were caught. Pushing his hands aside with unnatural force, she moved her chakra coated palms at mind blundering speeds and began to strike him fiercely, chakra expelling through her strikes as Neji couldn't do anything under the barrage of unnaturally fast strikes which were much faster and lethal than before.

"Whoa...look at her go! Her speed….it's mind buggling", said one civilian to which Kushina heard, making her smirk.

'_I accept that Hinata-chan's speed is impressive for her age….but if you're impressed by that, then just wait for Naru-koi'_, she thought as she gazed at him, standing there all calm & collected as he smiled upon seeing Hinata literally beat Neji into the ground.

'_No way….she learned that technique too….but I only taught her sixty four palms'_, thought Hiashi with a stunned expression…matching the expressions of thousands of people there.

'_Kami…'_, thought Hiruzen with widened eyes while the Kazekage too was watching the match with bugged eyes.

'_That girl….such mastery of those techniques at such young age….we'll see how she matches up against Sasuke-kun….kukukuku'_, he thought with an evil grin behind the white cloth.

'_200 strikes…..218….strikes…..227 strikes….245 strikes….254 STRIKES!'_, she mentally counted.

"**HAKKE HYAKUNIJUUHACHISHOU! **(**Eight Divination Signs: One Hundred and Twenty Eight Palms of the Hand)", **she yelled after delivering the final devastating blow to his gut making him fly back at blundering speeds before he skidded to a halt, coughing up blood due to most of his chakra points being blocked and as he just laid there, gritting his teeth while staring up in the sky.

'_No….this can't be'_, he thought with anger in his eyes as he again coughed up blood. Meanwhile the crowd, even the proctor had his mouth wide open, his dear senbon licking the dirt.

'_Holy shit!'_, thought everyone watching the match there except one.

'_What a drag…'_

'_Hinata-chan…..I…that was just amazing..'_, thought Naruto with a surprised expression on his face, he too like Hiashi had no idea that she was this skilled, not only physically but also strategically for the way she skillfully used the shadow clones. Yeah….he was the one who taught her the shadow clone technique considering that after the upgradation of her Toyotama Byakugan to two petals, her chakra reserves had increased combined with the training Hiashi and he had put her through, it was easy for her.

'_Hinata….your mother would be proud of you today__...__my daughter'_, thought Hiashi with a smile before he looked at Neji with sadness in his eyes.

'_Guess it's time for him to know what really happened with his father all those years ago'._

"Hm….that girl's strong, but not strong enough…..just like the past few centuries, I don't think I'm gonna find anyone worthy here", said a cloaked stranger and judging from her feminine voice, she was young, probably of the age of Kushina while strands of white hair could be seen from the overhead cloak of her as she could be seen standing on one of the stand roofs of the stadium, her face hidden by the cloak.

"Phewww…..that girl's got some serious talent", whistled A in appreciation, Mei nodding with him before he felt someone glare at him.

"You wouldn't happen to plot a kidnapping scheme….now would you Raikage-dono?", said Hiruzen in his threatening voice with Shinigami hovering over his head making A gulp nervously.

"O-Ofcourse not Hokage-dono….the thought never even crossed my mind!", he said before Sarutobi nodded with the usual kind smile on his face as he turned back to see the match.

'_Geez…..you'd think that the old geezer would trust me a little more'_, thought the yondaime Raikage with a sweatdrop before his eyes widened when he saw the Hyuuga kid getting up…a lot slowly with trembling knees as he repeatedly coughed blood, holding his gut while desperately trying to stand up.

"I….I…will n-not…l-lose to you", he said as he slowly stood up, now on his feet, his one arm hanging by his side while the other was holding his stomach. His breathing was ragged and came in pants, bruises all over his body as now his upper torso was completely torn off showing off the purple spots of the jyuuken strikes all over his body.

Meanwhile Hinata's eyes softened as she stared at his condition, it hurt….like a ton of bricks to ruthlessly beat him like that, but she already had that talk with Naruto. It tore her inside to hurt Neji like that….but he needed it to see the truth, to change his views and life for the better.

"Nii-san….you can't even stand properly now….please give up and rest….your injuries are too serious to be left alone", said Hinata with a calm expression as few tears involuntarily escaped her eyes while Neji just glared at her.

'_Neji….those eyes...it's just the same as me…wanting to prove yourself….but that's enough my friend'_, though Lee, sadness in his eyes as clenched his fists.

"I….I don't….n-need your p-pity!", he spat while dragging his feet towards her, his Byakugan now deactivated while his vision was blurry as he still continued to trudge forwards…occasionally coughing blood.

"I…w-will prove….t-that the b-branch….", he trailed as he began to fall forward, his hitai-ate falling off his head to reveal the caged bird seal on his forehead which was soon going to touch the dirt.

"Please….let it go Nii-san…", said Hinata after appearing out of a blur and catching his falling form, hugging him to her tightly as tears streamed down her face. She couldn't control it….to see her precious ones in such condition always hurt her, she could train her body & mind to be strong but one couldn't train his/her own heart.

"H-How can I let it go…I ha-have no one….who d-do I b-blame it on….destiny….", he muttered as he again coughed up some blood while Hinata hugged him tighter to her whereas Genma just watched the scene…not daring to interrupt it.

"Nii-san…please listen to me, _destiny can be carved just like a kunai, it wouldn't matter how hard the kunai is….._and you have me, Hanabi, otou-san…we would never leave you", she said while rubbing his back whereas few tears streamed down Neji's face as he heard her.

"I..I d-don't know what...to do H-Hinata….I'm confused…..I…don't know….w-what i-is my….p-purpose here. H-How can you forgive me…so easily…..for how I trea..ted you all t-the times…", he said, droplets of warm liquid falling on the dry dirt before his eyes rolled back in his head due to extreme exhaustion and his injuries, his body falling limp against her while she supported his weight. Wiping her tears, she spoke softly to herself…

"Because….to forgive someone…t-that's something Naruto-kun taught me"

**DONE! Phew….first fight's done and if some of ****you ****are going to complain about the VERY slow pace and only one fight in this chapter….well the next fight's gonna be a jaw breaker and from where the invasion would start…so yeah, next chapter marks the start of invasion arc!**

**So please tell me if you liked the chapter and your views upon it. ****T****he action had finally started and I'm gonna be expecting some serious reviews here….the last chapter I knew was just a filler and hence I didn't demanded for much reviews but for this one…..have some pity on the poor author ^_^ **

**Also, the cloaked stranger….hmm, I'm sure that you're gonna like that part. So with enough said and enough sacrifice of sleep….let's go to bed ne? Take care and review!****Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	24. Clash of the Scorned Hosts

**Hey there guys! First of all, sorry for the late update. The reason? Well I was sick **_**'cough' 'cough' **_**and typing this on my cell really took me for a ride this time though. But other than that, thanks for the reviews and suggestions (and special thanks to those who have been constantly reviewing...even when the fic had gotten a little boring).**

**POLL:**** Also, I'm setting up a poll for which element (Earth and Fire)should be unlocked for second level of Rinnegan cause it might be used in pseudo one too. Depending on the basic element, sub-elements & tertiary elements (and remember that the sub-elements & tertiary elements specified in ch 3 aren't the only ones that exist as stated in the scroll in ch 3) elements would be further unlocked. So yeah, choose carefully because the third level wouldn't be activating for a long time. And everyone please vote ^_^**

**Chapter-24****-Clash of the Scorned Hosts**

"Because….to forgive someone….t-that's something Naruto-kun taught me", she said, hugging him tightly to her as few tears glided down her cheeks. Meanwhile, seeing this strange scene, Genma walked to the standing pair and checked to see if Neji was unconscious now before announcing the match's results.

"WINNER: HYUUGA HINATA"

There was an eerie silence for a few seconds before the crowd lifted into loud cheers and applause, blowed away by the skills these young genins possessed.

"YEAH….GREAT MATCH!"

"AWESOME!"

"HINATA-SAMA, WILL YOU MARRY ME?"

"YOU ARE AMAZING HINATA!"

Random shouts came from stands making Hinata blush in embarrassment, her heart filling with pride and happiness due to the fact that they were cheering for her, recognizing her efforts and applauding for her. Putting Neji onto the stretcher which the medics had come with, she bowed to the crowd with a smile on her face as all of them stood up, their clapping getting louder for the Hyuuga heiress.

"HINATA-CHAN….YOU WERE FUCKING AWESOME!", shouted Naruto while Kin & Temari too cheered for her, they had become good friends with her over the month after all while Kiba, Sakura, Ino & Shino too applauded.

"THAT'S MY STUDENT….I'M PROUD OF YOU HINATA-CHAN!", yelled Kurenai while Kushina had a smile on her face. Meanwhile the people surrounding the ice queens backed away from Kurenai fearfully. Over the month, Kurenai and the other ice queens had started acting less coldly with each passing day and usually treated or greeted people with warm smiles on their faces, though the perverts still got their nuts cracked if they even dared look at them in a lecherous way. But, the bottom line was that some people were still not used to the warm ice queens, making them creep out every time they saw the four laugh or smile, and because of their changed behavior….their group had got the new name: the fire queens with Hiruzen stating that the will of fire burned brightly in them.

Meanwhile, blushing up a storm, Hinata quickly dashed to the balcony where all of the contestants were standing, wanting the undivided embarrassing attention she was getting to end soon.

"Hinata-chan!", said Naruto with a smile as he hugged her tightly, his eyes showing happiness and love for her, of how much he was proud of her while Hinata blushed darkly as she hugged him back, the brightest of the bright smiles on her face.

"That was like….awesome Hinata-chan….I never knew you could do the one twenty eight palms technique…I thought Hiashi oji only taught you the sixty four palms one", said Naruto with a smile, hint of curiosity licking his voice.

"Well…father did taught me sixty four palms….but after my second level was unlocked, I was seeing more chakra points than before and found that my speed and accuracy had improved tremendously, so I gave that technique a try which I found in the forbidden section of the Hyuuga library…..it was like it came to me naturally", she said with a smile after he released her from the hug.

"See….I told you that you were a genius Hinata-chan", he said with a smirk as she blushed at the compliment.

"It was only thanks to you Naruto-kun", she whispered back while it looked like she was debating with herself over something.

"Um Hinata-chan….is something wrong?", whispered Naruto in concern as he noticed that the other contestants too were looking at them and that Kiba & Gaara were already going down for their match after the proctor had called them. Meanwhile Hinata's cheeks were flaming red as she fidgeted in her spot.

"Hinata…?", he again asked, getting concerned while her head was down and thus couldn't see her blushing face.

"Um….Naruto-kun….g-good luck", she said while stuttering a bit making Naruto look at her dumbly.

"Huh?...That's why you are so nervous?", he deadpanned before his eyes widened when he found himself in a passionate lip lock with her, her eyes closed while her cheeks were tomato red. Releasing him…she looked at him shyly with a smile while he just blinked before a grin stretched over his face.

"Wow….Hinata…I never thought tha-"

"Just go Naruto-kun!", exclaiming with dark blush, she started to push him as the proctor was waiting for him.

"H-Hey….alright, alright I'm going….geez!", he exclaimed before shunshining out of the balcony. Appearing in front of Genma, he noticed that Gaara & Kiba were already standing there with serious faces.

"So….I've already explained the rules, breaking of which will result in immediate disqualification", said Genma as Naruto & Kiba nodded while Gaara just kept a passive face.

"Get ready now you three…..and remember, try not to kill each other as civilians and merchants are here too, hence it will not be a good display for them….but other than that, much of everything is allowed", explained Genma as the three stood apart several meters away from each other.

"_Alright….finally it's time for showdown Ayumi-chan"_, he said inwardly while noticing that Kiba & Gaara had dead serious faces this time and knew that they had improved tremendously and would give a much better fight than they gave in preliminaries.

"_Yeah…but don't go showing off like before….this time act like a shinobi and keep MOST of your abilities hidden…make them think that__ you __haven't improved much. Remember Naruto….deception is the biggest weapon of a shinobi. You're a jinchuriki…there would be many people sitting in those stands who are here only for the sole purpose of seeing of what you're capable of and devising strategies against you….heck, there might be a member of Akatsuki among those civilians. So yeah….don't show off too much and use your powerful techniques ONLY when they are necessary"_, said Ayumi in a serious but soft tone while Naruto nodded with her, he had already discussed this with Kushina, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Ayumi before and knew that he had to follow the plan here.

He had already given the message in the preliminaries and this time, he would be subtle and fight like a shinobi….just like Jiraiya and Kakashi had asked him to.

"_Hai Ayumi-chan….you just watch me…I'll make you proud"_, he said with a confident smirk, his body flowing with determination while she smiled at him.

'_I'm already proud of you Naruto-kun'_, she thought with a fond smile.

'_Watch me ero-sennin, Kakashi-sensei, Kaa-san and…..Itachi-nii….I'll make you guys proud'_, he thought with a smile, getting ready for the match, connecting which were the events which would have a huge impact on Konoha in the upcoming hours.

'_Make your mother and your lover proud Naru-kun'_, thought Kushina with a loving smile while the ex-ice queens too were wishing him best of luck.

'_Are you watching him sensei? He has grown so much….you would be so proud of him'_, thought Kakashi with a sad smile while among the stands, sat one civilian who was having similar thoughts.

'_Let's see how much you have improved gaki….I've abandoned by research to come here, so don't you dare disappoint me kid'_, thought the one & only Jiraya, who sat there transformed into a civilian. If Kushina knew that he had actually come to see Naruto fight on the cost of his quality research…..he had never hear the end of it. He didn't want to admit to anyone that there was someone more important to him than his books for once…..but the boy was really making him soft.

"So…are you guys ready?", said the proctor while he continued to chew on his senbon, before he saw the three contestants nod ever so slightly.

"Alright….HAJIME!"

And with the familiar shout of the proctor…..nobody moved? The three contestants just stood there, tension in the arena flowing in waves as they waited for someone to make a move…or even just a signal. Kiba was standing, his legs stretched while Akamaru was on his head…both of them ready to jump at the first signs of any motion.

Gaara was as calm as ever, just standing there with his arms folded over his chest while his eyes were closed whereas the trained eyes of a shinobi could see fine sand particles rotating around him, ready to attack or defend at any second. And lastly was Naruto…..who was standing there while scratching his head, a confused expression on his face.

"_Um…psst….Ayumi-chan….why are they just standing?"_, asked Naruto inwardly making her sweatdrop.

"_Ahehe….oh I don't know….maybe they are waiting FOR YOU TO MAKE YOUR MOVE!"_, she screamed inside his head making him flinch as he outwardly started rotating his pinky in his ear.

"_Geez! I was only joking Ayumi-chan….why do you always get so hyper?"_, he said making a vein pop on her forehead.

'_Rely on __my foxy-kun __to joke with a demon sealed inside of him amidst a match'_, she thought with a chuckle before deciding to keep quiet and let him concentrate.

'_Oh well….I had guessed that Kiba would immediately attack straight forward….but I guess Ino wasn't joking that day….these guys really have improved'_, he thought as the wind rustled their clothes and hair, while it looked to the observers like a Mexican stand off.

'_Alright….I have to target Naruto first since he's easily above us all…and as much as I hate to say this…but I have to team up with Gaara this time'_, thought Kiba, observing Naruto who was looking like his mind was occupied elsewhere while Gaara just stood there with his eyes closed. Beads of sweat rolled down the Inuzuka's face, as the tension grew denser between the contestants.

'_Aaahhh! Look at them….they are just standing there….their faces so calm like nothing is going on'_, he thought in frustration before taking few breaths, trying to calm himself down while Akamaru's growling too died down, both of them sort of meditating whereas the crowd was getting anxious as well as frustrated that none of them was moving even a muscle!

'_Okay…calm down Kiba…remember all that torturous training you went through…..an Inuzuka should be calm as well as fierce during a battle….take deep breaths'_, he thought while Naruto himself had a blank expression on his face, just standing there. Though you could identify a slight bit of change in his expression when Gaara opened his eyes, which were calm but on the inside Naruto knew that there was a raging volcano waiting to be erupted.

"Uzumaki Naruto…", came the calm but emotionless voice of Gaara, as he now moved his hands down to his sides while Kiba slowly slipped into the typical Inuzuka clan's taijutsu whereas the blonde jinchuriki raised his eyebrows.

"I will prove my **existence**", came the slightly demonic voice of Gaara whose chakra flared while Naruto just blinked in confusion.

"Whatever that means…..", he muttered to himself when he noticed Kiba running towards him, his eyes widening at the speed at which the Inuzuka genin was closing the distance between them.

"Here I come Naruto…", said Kiba with a feral smirk as he watched the momentary surprised expression on Naruto's face before it turned into a grin, just standing there. Dust picking up wildly behind the blurry dashing form of Kiba, he reared his fist before going for the punch while Naruto noticed that it was chakra coated. Much to Kiba's surprise though, his fist just phased through Naruto's face before he skidded a long way due to his tremendous momentum.

'_A bunshin? Since when can he create a bunshin?'_, thought Kiba before he suddenly turned around and with amazing precision and speed caught Naruto's foot which was going to collide with his head. Meanwhile Naruto had a surprised expression on his face…..just for a moment though before it turned into a smirk.

"I can smell ya Naruto", said Kiba with a smirk while Naruto's smirk turned into a grin whereas Gaara was just standing there…..strangely not taking part in the fight, his eyes calm & calculated.

'_What's he doing? In the preliminaries, he was so eager to fight and kill someone…..but now….he__'s__ just standing there. What did they teach him in Oto anyway?'_, thought Temari with a shocked expression as she gazed worriedly upon her brother. Though most of the time, Gaara was a bloodthirsty monster and wanted nothing more than to kill someone….and though he scared her very much, he was still her brother and she cared for him. She could tell that Kankurou cared for him too….but didn't show it.

"Wow Kiba…..I gotta admit….you've improved drastically, much beyond my expectations", said Naruto with a smile, his leg still in the grip of the Inuzuka before he puffed into a smoke making Kiba curse inwardly.

'_Damn him! His shadow clones really are a nuisance…'_, turning his head he saw Naruto standing, several meters behind Gaara who was still facing forward….as if not affected by anything.

_'Hm...not bad...that Inuzuka sure has talent'_, thought A as he watched the match with a keen eye while Mei was wondering what Naruto was really capable of.

_'I can tell that he's clearly holding back...looks like he's saving the fireworks for later'_, she thought while the Kazekage was frowning at Naruto.

_'That brat...I bet that it was Kushina who had removed the curse seal from him...only she's the one who can possibly break that seal. She has always been a thorn in my side'_, he thought while gripping the furniture he was sitting on tightly. Orochimaru had come to know a few weeks ago that Naruto no longer possessed the curse seal had made him angry, but the fact that Anko no longer had the seal had made him downright furious for the had plans for his ex pupil in the future.

_'Though Sasuke-kun has shown himself to be a promising candidate too...guess we'll reserve Naruto-kun and that Hyuuga hieress for later'_, he further thought.

Meanwhile Naruto was inwardly frowning at Gaara's unmoved form, he was watching him since the match had started and wasn't able to decipher what the sand jinchuriki was upto.

_"His chakra levels have been rising ever since the match has started...what is he planning anyway"_, said Naruto inwardly when he heard Ayumi speak.

_"And what's more...that shukaku's chakra has been growing steadily too",_, making Naruto's eyes widen a bit before he made a dash towards Gaara, intent on stopping him from doing whatever the guy had in mind.

_'I definitely didn't know he could harness his bijuu's chakra like that'_, he thought as he had vanished from the civilian's sight, following the zig zag path making dust trail behind him while Gaara still hadn't moved whereas Kiba was standing back, watching as Naruto moved to attack Gaara.

_'Heh...his speed is the same as a month ago...what was he upto anyway, eating ramen?'_, thought Kiba amusedly, matching the thoughts of jounins, genins and kages who had seen him fight a month ago, thought they had an almost confirmed suspicion that he was holding back, or rather was wearing training weights.

Naruto, rearing his leg back went for a kick at Gaara's back before much...MUCH to the surprise of almost everyone there who had seen Gaara fight a month ago, his kick was blocked when a wall of slightly red glowing sand shot up and easily absorbed the impact.

"W-What...", trailed Naruto before he blurred back and barely dodged a hand made up of that same reddish sand and appeared several meters behind the STILL standing one-tailed jinchuriki.

"What the fuck was that?", muttered Kiba as he watched wide eyed, the sand rolling around Gaara in tendrils. The speed with which his sand had moved...scratch that, he hadn't even seen the sand move! It was ridiculous! How Naruto was able to dodge that blow...he had no idea.

_'Gaara...what's happening here? And why does that sand looks reddish..'_, thought Temari before she gasped in realisation.

_'Could it be the work of his inner demon'_,her thoughts continued while most of the people in the arena had amazed expressions on their faces.

_"Ayumi-chan...what was that? His defense...not only has it gotten faster...but stronger too",_ he said inwardly.

"_I can feel that his sand is youki enhanced...this time he's not using his normal chakra to merge with the sand...it's definitely Shukaku's chakra that has enhanced his defence tremendously"_, she said making him eyes become wide before he nodded while Kiba just stood there, trying to take in this new development.

Meanwhile Kushina already had her Sharingan activated and had a shocked expression on her face. The reason? Because she could see red chakra flowing through the sand.

_'But...how can this kid harness his bijuu's chakra...and not only is he harnessing it, but to incorporate it into his sand, he's controlling it pretty effectively too'_, she thought while Kakashi was thinking the same thing.

_'Kukuku...looks like training the Suna's jinchuriki was a good idea after all...let's see how you handle him now Naruto-kun. I'm glad though that I didn't kill the Kazekage earlier...for without him, this wouldn't have been possible'_, thought Orochimaru with a smirk while the other three kages were stupified at the strange events that were taking place.

_'But...a month ago, he couldn't even control Shukaku's bloodlust and it's chakra, his youki was wild before...and now, it's tamed and he's controlling it to his will"_, said Naruto as he racked his brain for any possible explanation.

_"Look Naruto-kun...something really suspicious is going on here. For that kid to control youki like that...he must have trained himself very harshly...no, someone taught him. And not just anyone...it has to be someone special to be able to acquire such a feat in just a month", _she explained to him while he nodded with her...a bit nervous since he knew what a jinchuriki could be capable of. And if Gaara could fully control Shukaku...then he was in for one hell of a ride.

"Heh...this match has just gone up a notch", thought Naruto with a smirk before he heard the hollow, but calm voice of Gaara.

"Are you done talking with it...Uzumaki Naruto?", said Gaara, still facing forward, his eyes closed while Naruto narrowed his eyes.

_'This guy...'_

"Is it telling you to fear me? Is it telling you to run for your life?", he again spoke while Kiba just looked at him in confusion.

_'I think this guy hit his head pretty hard over the month'_, he thought with a sigh while Akamaru growled besides him.

"Naah...actually she's saying to kick your ass", said Naruto with a smirk before he started going through a couple of handseals.

_'Let's see if some ninjutsu is effective against your special sand...I don't have water anywhere here and neither can I create it like Kaa-san, lightning would just lead to earthing since sand is an insulator...wind, it might work'_, he thought with a serious expression. Ending with the rooster handsign, he muttered.

"**Futon: ****Kami Oroshi** (Wind Release: Godly Wind from the Mountains)", putting his hands in position (just like in Kamehameha of DBZ), he released swirling horizontal vortex of wind from the core of his both hands, which flew towards Gaara at blinding speeds as dust picked up and revolved around the jet-like attack before it hit the same sand wall, creating explosive gusts of wind. Shielding their eyes, both Naruto & Kiba looked intently, trying to peirce through the dust cloud that was created around Gaara. Naruto exhaled small amounts of wind chakra from his mouth resulting in the dust screen blowing away to reveal a reddish sand dome, in which Gaara must've been standing, Naruto deduced.

_'Looks like his sand is way too condensed to disintegrate it into individual particles...damn, I guess I have to use sub elemental techniques to get through that irritating defense of his. Though I can't say I donot enjoy challenging fights for once...from guys around my age especially'_, he thought with a smirk before a surprised expression took birth on his face when he saw Kiba attack Gaara.

"**GATSUUGA! **(Fang Over Fang)", the Inuzuka yelled before the combined rotating form of Kiba and Akamaru hit the sand dome dead on. Dust again flew off, obstructing their forms from the civilians sight while Naruto waited to see if it had worked, though he was mostly sure that it wouldn't have. Everyone saw two shadowy blurs jump out of the smoke, the two figures skidding across the dirt before it revealed two Kibas standing there, with no injuries but sand over them as they dusted themselves off.

"Damn! It almost worked!", one of them yelled making Naruto's eyes widen in shock.

_'What!'_, he exclaimed in his mind before he again blurred out to appear several meters to the right of the Inuzuka duo (in front of Gaara). The dust blew off because of the light breeze for it to reveal a hole in the dome, a small spiralling one which was being restored at astounding rates by the reddish sand.

_'But...'_, Naruto's shocked face turned into a smirking one before he spoke to Kiba.

"Kiba my man...you are a genius!", he exclaimed enthusiastically.

"Huh? What ar-",

"You had your shots...**now it's my turn**", the perplexed Inuzuka was interrupted by a hollow demonic voice sending chills down the Inuzuka's spine. Both of them turned their heads to see the dome dissipating for it to reveal Gaara, completely unharmed who had this blood thirsty gleam in his eyes making Kiba nervous while Naruto just looked at the sand jinchuriki calmly.

Gaara just stood there, his gaze never leaving Naruto before, slowly large sand hands formed behind the still jinchuriki. Both Naruto's and Kiba's eyes widened when the hands started to rotate around Gaara, their speeds increasing before it was nothing but a blur to even Naruto's eyes as wind started to pick up and started to flow outwards making both of them shield their eyes from the dust particles.

Meanwhile, almost everyone had their jaws on the ground as they gazed at the sand jinchuriki perform such feats which no genin couldn't even imagine to do.

_'This kid...having such control over his bijuu at such young age...he's the only one besides Haku that can even compare to Naruto in talent I guess. Let's see how you handle this one Naruto'_, thought Kakashi while the ex-ice queens were looking mesmerised at the battle that was taking place whereas Kushina had a smirk on her face.

_'It would be interesting to see how sochi counters this'_

"**Sand Shuriken**", whispered Gaara as the wildly rotating hands started to throw sand shuriken projectiles at speeds which could be described as mind boggling.

_'No Kiba!'_, thought Hana in worry as Kiba was only standing there, it seemed like he couldn't even see the attack that was coming towards him. Just as Kiba was about to be hit, Naruto suddenly appeared before he pushed the Inuzuka to the side with him falling too because of the momentum leading to both of them barely dodging the wave of sand shuriken which had passed from above them. Akamaru puffed back while he skidded with Kiba whereas Naruto had flipped over, his shadow falling on Kiba's body who looked up to see the blonde facing forwards with a frown on his face.

_'Guess crippling him once in a week was an excellent idea indeed...what the boy was capable of seeing earlier only through Rinnegan, now he can do that with his normal eyes...Kushi-chan is really something'_, thought Jiraiya with a smirk before he watched Gaara with a frown.

_'The Suna's jinchuriki...the way he's controlling the sand, an ability granted by Shukaku...I'm sure that someone has either tampered with the seal which is holding the bijuu in...or it could be that the seal has weakened. The kid should've become more bloodthirsty than before...but he's as calm as a cucumber'_, the toad sanin thought before he left his thoughts to concentrate on the match.

"N-Naruto...why did you...", the Inuzuka trailed with surprise in his voice before Naruto answered.

"That attack could've killed you...or crippled you for life", making Kiba's eyes widen while Akamaru was on his chest whimpering.

"But I couldn't even see them!", he exclaimed in shock making Naruto sigh.

"Use your enhanced ability to smell you idiot...you're letting the pressure get to you", he replied making Kiba scoff.

"All I can smell on that guy is sand...nothing else", he said before standing up.

"Smell harder...do you smell any foul odour coming from his chakra"

Putting chakra in his nose, extending his senses to the max...Kiba's face turned into that of an expression of realisation.

"Yeah...it's faint...but there is that foul odour. I guess that's why Akamaru was growling", muttered Kiba as Naruto nodded with him.

"You're really something Uzumaki...let's see you dodge it this time", growled Gaara as the hands which were now moving slowly again sped up making Naruto and Kiba's eyes widen as they readied themselves.

_"Naruto-kun...release the first level"_, came the calm voice of Ayumi making Naruto's eyes widen.

_"So early?"_, he asked making her sigh.

_"Listen here...that kid over there is channeling much larger amounts of youki than before and you should do something unless you want your friend here to die"_, she said to him making him nod as he formed one handed ram seal, closing his eyes to concentrate.

"Release: Tier 1!", he exclaimed, passing chakra through the gravity seal on his chest as suddenly he could feel the effects.

"Aahh...that feels good...light as a feather!", he said while stretching his arms and shoulders, cracking his muscles whereas Kiba just looked at him like he was crazy.

"**Sand Shuriken Barrage**", the Inuzuka heard before he felt himself being grabbed along with Akamaru. The next thing Kiba knew was that his head was spinning when he was dropped to the ground along with Akamaru.

"W-What...h-happened?", he asked while grabbing his head.

"I saved your ass...that's what happened", he heard the familiar voice of Naruto. Opening his eyes, his jaw dropped as he gazed upon the destruction that had followed Gaara's attack.

"Holy...shit...", he mutteredbefore standing up, a bit shakily while noticing that Akamaru too had recovered from the aftermath of the attack. In front of them, the whole ground was covered with reddish sand while there were several deep craters, formed due to the blast caused by hundreds of sand coated shuriken that Gaara had unleashed upon them.

Meanwhile, almost everyone was stunned into silence...their brains taking time to process what they had seen had really happened.

_'H-He dodged everyone of them...every single of them while carrying the other contestant and his partner. Normally I wouldn't be surprised if it was a Sharingan user who did this...but Naruto-san, the whole time he didn't even had his Rinnegan activated'_, thought Yugito with an astonished face, possibly matching the thoughts of almost everyone out there.

_'You know you want him kitten'_, Nibi purred in her head making her blush who this time, decided to stay quiet and concentrate on what was going on.

_'Nicely done Naruto'_, thought Kakashi with his U-shape eye smile while Hana sighed in relief.

'_Thank Kami Kiba's okay...thanks Naruto-kun'_, thought the Inuzuka fire queen with a grateful smile.

"Oh...now this is what you call a fight", said Anko as she ate chips frantically, her eyes glued to the fight that was going down there making Kurenai and Yugao sweatdrop at her antics. Kushina though had a frown etched on her face as she stared intently at Gaara with her Sharingan having two tomoes.

_'Something is wrong here...no child of his age should be capable of performing such feats with Naruto being the exception because of Ayumi cooperating with him. Someone strong...really strong must have taught him...he's not using his normal chakra at all, all I can see is red chakra in that defense of his'_, thought Kushina while Jiraiya & Hiruzen too were looking at Gaara solemnly. Meanwhile, Gaara had an astonished look on his face.

_'So he was holding back on me all the time...he was toying with me!'_, thought Gaara as he clenched his fists, his chakra rising through the roofs making Naruto's & everyone else's eyes widen as they could feel the foul effects of a bijuu's chakra.

"Uzumaki Naruto...", came the partial demonic voice of Gaara, his hair defying gravity as they started to lift upwards before he put his hands in a snake handseal.

"Kiba! Stay close...that guy's upto something insane!", said Naruto with the uttermost seriousness in his voice while Kiba nodded with him...his facial expression that of a lost puppy who clearly had no idea of what was going on. Well, he was caught up into a jinchuriki duel after all...no matter how much he may have had trained, but the amount of that foul smelling chakra Gaara was emitting was suffocating.

"**SAND TSUNAMI!**", the Suna jinchuriki yelled before much to everybody's mind boggling surprise, a huge...HUGE wall of sand erupted behind Gaara, shadowing more than half of the stadium while it's hieght reached to the top of the stands**. **The spectators had their heads lifted as they gazed at the humongous sand structure, their eyes as wide as they could get.

_'This gaki...just how much strong is he?'_, thought Mei with a stunned expression while the other shinobi except a few ones were wondering the same thing. Kurenai was clenching the garment of her top as she gazed worriedly at Naruto and Kiba...she certainly wasn't expecting for them to go against this much skill. Kushina though, had a serious expression on her face.

"This is getting out of control...there's definitely something wrong with that guy", muttered Kakashi making Kushina nod with him.

"Hai...but I trust Naru-kun...I've trained him to atleast stand against S-class shinobi...I know he'll keep himself and Kiba out of harm. But I have this bad feeling that something's about to happen ...be on your toes", she said quietly to him making him nod lightly, their sitting forms being shadowed by the sand wall.

"Naruto-kun...", trailed Hinata in worry for her object of affection while Kin, Temari, Ino, Mei and Sakura were worried for him too.

_'Gaara...just what did you went through in Oto to gain such power'_, thought Temari as she put her hand over her chest, not only worried for Naruto...but also for her little brother.

Meanwhile Kiba was frozen in fear and awe of the sight in front of him with Akamaru hiding in his coat, his hands trembling with fear and anxiety.

_'Kami...just what are we facing here? This is no ordinary shinobi...I'm completely out of his league...fuck this! No amount of training in one month would've prepared me for this...not even Garouga would be effective against this...but Naruto might...'_, his thoughtsthough trailed after he had turned to look at the blond, only to see his face sporting equal stunned expression.

_'Great! If Naruto is intimidated by this...then we're truly done for...though I don't blame the guy...any genin would soil his pants in front of this maniac'_.

_"Ayumi-chan...where is all that sand coming from anyway, surely all of this wasn't stored in that gourd of his"_, he inwardly consulted her.

"_That gaki...he had been still ever since the match started...my guess is that he was digging his chakra deep into the ground, moulding it into the minerals. Sand is something which can be created on almost any land...he was actually preparing for this from the start...clever one indeed"_, spoke Ayumi in his mindscape making his eyes widen in amazement. Though the guy had serious mental problems, his strategy for this match had to be appreciated.

_'Damn...I really underrestimated you Gaara...oh well, guess I'll become a little bit serious here'_, thought Naruto as he smirked while Kiba had just given up hope.

Gaara though had a maniacal smile on his face, his hands still in the snake handsign to maintain the technique while you could see red tendrils of chakra swirling around him, the wall behind him looking like a hungry predator waiting to be unleashed on it's prey.

"**Let's see where you run this time...Mother says goodbye Uzumaki**", said Gaara, his voice demonic as his grin became more maniacal before he pointed his right fist outwards. Much to the crowd's increasing state of awe and amazement, the huge sunray obstructor made up of sand slowly began to fall forward while Gaara's youkified defense surrounded him. Meanwhile Genma had shunshined out of the area to appear on the opposite side of the sand wall. It's shadow elongating, the mind numbing structure began to descend faster due to gravitation while Kiba began to step backwards in paralysed fear as beads of sweat rolled down his face, the natural sound of sand particles rubbing against each other sounding like his funeral melody before he snapped out of his trance when felt his shoulder being grabbed.

"WHY IS HE JUST STANDING THERE?", yelled Ino as she stood up from her seat after witnessing that Naruto was standing still like a statue while Sakura too had a wide eyed expression on her face, her eyes filled with immense fear.

**BOOM!**

The Suna jinchuriki's creation finally collided with the solid ground, it's impact thunderous, shaking the arena to it's cores while it felt like an earthquake had struck the stadium. The contestants struggled to maintain their footing as the spectators too grabbed their seats tightly.

_'You are indeed something Naruto-kun'_, thought Orochimaru, barely restraining himself from cackling like a mad man while Hiruzen had a relieved expression on his face, matching Mei's one whereas A too had an approving smile on his face.

Ino, Sakura, Kin and Temari had completely torn looks on their faces as they watched the desert formed by Gaara's attack, where Naruto & Kiba were previously standing, now acting like a coffin for them.

_'Is he...dead?'_, they thought simultaneously, as if the word 'dead' itself was tearing their heart apart, though Gaara left no room for any further thoughts.

"**Sand Burial!**", came the demonic voice of Gaara who slammed his hands on the sand coated area he had created while the crowd could see the vast amounts of sand hardening immediately, contracting around itself giving them an idea of what would've happened if they were trapped in there. The ones who had seen Gaara fight in the preliminaries knew that it was over...heck, they were sure that the duo was dead.

Tears started to glide down Ino's, Kin's, Temari's & Sakura's cheeks as they slowly came to a bitter realisation that Naruto & Kiba, both were dead. No matter how strong Naruto may have been, there was no way he could've even survived such wide-scale technique.

"Naruto-kun and Kiba-kun...both are fine", came the soft but stern voice of Hinata making Temari & Kin turn their heads to see the Hyuuga hieress, her Toyotama Byakugan activated making them wide eyed while Shino had informed Sakura and Ino too.

"B-But how...?", asked Kin as Hinata continued to watch a specific spot of the sand-filled area.

"Just watch...", she said with a smirk while up there, Kushina too sighed in relief with the fire queens matching her expression of relief.

_'That baka...he almost gave me a heart attack'_, thought the Uzumaki while Kakashi had a hand on his heart as he gazed at the sky.

_'Minato-sensei...he truly enjoys giving us heart attacks...just like you'_.

Down at battlefield, Genma coughed because of the sand particles flying here and there. Since he was behind Gaara he jumped towards where Naruto and Kiba were previously standing. The spectators though, some were happy that the demon was killed while some of them were enraged...angered that this outsider had killed their hero. And just as supporters of Naruto were going to go berserk in protest and anger, they suddenly noticed that the spot near which Genma was standing, especially the sand started to rotate. The rotation of sand started from a spot of small area before the circular area increased, particles of sand shifting as a conical vortex was slowly becoming larger while Gaara's eyes widened. Trying to control the sand, he found that it was getting wild...out of his control before wind started picking up around the area.

_'What's happening?'_, thought Genma before he jumped back while shielding his eyes. He was going to announce Gaara as the winner when this had happened.

BHHOOOMM!

The sand exploded upwards as an extremely strong wave of what could be called as a raging whirlwind ascended from the sand's grasp. It's flow wild, suddenly three shadows came out flying out of the hole the tornado had created. Everyone's jaws dropped when it revealed for them to see a completey unharmed Naruto & Kiba fly high in the air because of the whirlwind.

"KIBA...LET'S DO IT!", shouted Naruto while in mid air making one of the Kiba smirk back at him.

Both Kiba and Akamaru(Henged) started to rotate together around each other, forming the shape of a rotating corkscrew as they headed towards an astonished form of Gaara with amazing speeds.

"**Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!**", exclaimed Naruto, his eyes still normal before two clones popped besides him in mid air. Grabbing both of them by their arms, he started rotating them with high speeds before releasing the doppelgangers, targetting them at Gaara who now had his amplified defense in front of him.

"**Gatsuuga! **(Fang Over Fang)", yelled Kiba before their rotating forms crashed into Gaara's sand defense leading to dust again covering them.

"Alright...let's do this", said a clone in his mid flight, both of them using gravity impulses at the sole of their feet to amplify their speeds before one of them extended his hand (open palm)towards the other who started to gather up chakra in the hand.

_'No...how could he have...'_, trailed almost every jounin & chunin there who were bug eyed as they had immediately recognised the technique. White chakra started to rotate in the clone's hands before it formed a perfect white glowing sphere of rotating chakra, completely engulfing his palm. His work done, the clone who had gathered the chakra puffed out while the other continued at blurry speeds towards where dust had picked up around Gaara.

"KIBA...OUT OF THE WAY!", the clone yelled before Kiba with Akamaru jumped out of the dust cloud, making it blow away to reveal the same corckscrew dent in the youkified sand wall just like before.

**"RASENGAN!**(Spiralling Sphere)", the clone yelled, the white glowing orb hitting the cavity in his defense dead on while the original Naruto landed on the ground with a smirk. The yondaime's technique easily penetrating the already weak spot of the defense, collided with the stomach of a wide eyed Gaara. The white glow of an explosion expanded outwards while Gaara flew backwards at blurry velocity, his body rotating in midair due to the Rasengan before he slammed into the stadium wall with a voilent crashing sound. Debris flew everywhere as dust covered his form which was embedded in a crater formed in the concrete. Everyone was slack-jawed as they had just witnessed the Yondaime's technique being performed by a genin...evens jounins couldn't do this technique!

"Hokage-dono...if I'm not mistaken, that's Yondaime's technique right?", asked A making Hiruzen nod who knew that Naruto had learned the Rasengan.

"But it took him three years to master that technique! How can Naruto have learned it in just one month?", asked Mei with surprise practically dripping from her voice making the Sarutobi smirk.

"Let's just say Uzumaki are good ay breaking records", he replied with sarcasm.

_'Hmm...good presence of mind...Naruto had seen what Kiba's technique had done to his defence earlier...he had understood that blind direct attacks wouldn't work and that he needed attacks which composed of rotation and raw power...and using Rasengan, which was the perfect technique for the work here, to amplify the damage caused by Gatsuuga was an ingenius idea indeed'_, thought Kakashi with a smile before he took out a familiar orange book. Just as he opened the first page, it turned wet completely like it was soaked in water. A look of horror came across his face when he heard a sweet voice.

"How many times have I told you not to read this smut Kakashi-kun", he turned his head to see the dark face of Kushina making him sweat nervously as he nodded to her meekly before she smiled and turned back to the match.

_'Why do you hate me Kami?'_, he thought while quietly sobbing to himself making Yugao sigh at his antics.

_'That's his book no. 53 which has been soaked this month'_, she thought while the other three were snickering to themselves in amusement of Kakashi's plight.

Meanwhile Hinata, who had her Toyotama Byakugan activated had noticed something ...something minute on Naruto's hair which not even Sharingan was capable of seeing.

_'Those particles...their crystals? I get it now...he must have used crystal release that not even Gaara's best technique could penetrate'_, she thought with amazement...stunned that he was able to form such a strong defense in just a manner of seconds.

"Did it work?", asked Kiba after landing besides the original Naruto who had a victorious smirk on his face.

"Look for yourself"

Turning his head, Kiba's lips tugged up when he saw the unconscious form of Gaara embedded into the wall whose clothes were torn, especially where the Rasengan had impacted.

Though they lost their smiles when the seemingly injured Gaara slowly turned into sand which fell to the ground.

Nothing...

_'A sand clone? Or was it...a substitution?'_, thought Naruto before he felt something move beneath his feet making his eyes widen. Tendrils of that same youkified sand were wrapped around his legs and were making their way upwards.

"AAHHH!", he turned his head to see Kiba flying back at tremendous speeds, courtesy of a fist made up of reddish sand.

"**You thought you could erase my existence Uzumaki? I'll never vanish as long as there are people like you for me to kill**", turning his head, Naruto saw Gaara emerging several meters in front of him with a dead-cold expression, his eyes showing the amount of bloodlust he was having.

"I should've asked you this earlier...but why are you doing this Gaara? Are you too weak to let the Shukaku control you like that?", said the blond jinchuriki with a serious face while the sand had now completely covered his lower body.

"**Sand Coffin!**", exclaimed the Suna jinchuriki, ignoring Naruto's question before Naruto now became completely covered by the red sand making Gaara's wicked grin become wider. Outstretching his palm with his fingers crunched, he spoke.

"**Sand Buri-"**

**"Shinra Tensei! **(Divine Judgement)", came the muffled shout of Naruto before the sand coating around him disintegrated into small sand particles making Gaara's eyes widen in shock.

_'He broke my sand coffin! It's that same gravitational technique of his'_, he thought before he saw Naruto doing three handseals.

Lightning started to crack in Naruto's right hand, before it was completely engulfed by it, the lightning producing sounds as if thousands of birds were chirping in chorus.

"**Chidori!**(Thousand Birds)"

**And cut! Well...I tried to make action in this chapter good but it might be lacking a , the things about Gaara being too powerful and other things which you can't understand at the moment, so don't go flaming on me saying that I'm making other characters godlike too...the reason they're strong is because of Naruto gaining the Rinnegan in Forest of Death which had life changing effects on everybody and hence the summary I gave is being justified. BUT, it's not like they would be super strong (with the exception of Gaara but he wouldn't compare to Naruto and maybe even Hinata because of her secondary Byakugan...the rest like Neji & Kiba, I made reasonably powerful because of Gai's & Inuzuka clan's training respectively and other things), they are just stronger than they were in the canon due to some extra motivation (Naruto)...nothing more, nothing less(I addressed this issue because people somehow misunderstood what I said here and complained about it in the reviews for this chapter). This is a NARUTO CENTRIC fic and often Naruto will get the chance to shine (hope this pleases you guys). The fact about Gaara being trained in Oto...if you think it's a stretch, then I have reasons and anyone of the likes of Orochimaru(extremely manipulative) could've given Gaara the option of gaining more power to erase Naruto's existence, for he had seen how powerful Naruto was in prelims. Not sure if many of you guys would like Chidori, but considering that Kakashi was also his teacher during the month and that Naruto showed his control over lightning element in preliminaries, it was like...COMPLETELY logical for the guy to teach his sensei's son that move (and considering that pseudo second level Rinnegan eliminates the defect of tunnel vision ^_^).**

**The start of invasion is just two or three paragraphs away (which I was lazy to write ^_^), so don't sweat about this chapter being wasted on one fight alone...**

**Oh well...but please for god's sake, REVIEW! The last chapter which was action packed got even lesser reviews than the flashback chapter (this is absurd really)...I know you guys hate Hinata but c'mon. These chapters are like golden...with the invasion and all and I'm really expecting reviews like you gave me in the preliminaries. Through this, I'm atleast able to know what your current views are for the fic and the chapter...it's not like I can read your thoughts sitting hundreds of miles away...if I'm putting my part of the dedication for this fic, then I can atleast expect some dedication in feedbacks from you guys right? I know some of you are lazy, well I'm too...but I always give review to the updated chapters of the fics that I read because I know just what a single review can do to an author (it can lift his spirits tremendously or discourage him, if flamed unecessarily/harsh criticism). So please, let your thoughts about the chapters (especially like these where the plot twists and action takes place) fly to me.**

**Ahem, sorry if that rant frustrated you or anything...but sometimes frustration goes to my head too (in this case, it might be sickness though ^_^). Also, please vote for the POLL and I hope next chapter would come out sooner than this. Adios my friends and take care!**

**N6023**


	25. A Crinkled Leaf

**Hey guys! So sorry again for the late update but exams are up here. T_T **

**Also, the poll has now been closed with earth element being the winner. Though thanks for all the reviews in the last chapter and I hope you enjoy this one ^_^**

**Chapter-25-A Crinkled Leaf**

_'He broke my sand coffin! It's that same gravitational technique of his'_, Gaara thought before he saw Naruto doing three handseals.

Lightning started to crack in Naruto's right hand, before it was completely engulfed by it, the lightning producing sounds as if thousands of birds were chirping in chorus.

"**Chidori!**(Thousand Birds)", he exclaimed with his left hand holding the wrist of his other lightning charged one as lightning streaks cracked around his hand, his face engulfed by the electric blue aura of the technique as dust picked up around him while the blond activated his Rinnegan, it's effects this time much less noticeable to the ones around him.

_'What...is this technique?'_, thought Gaara as he prepared himself.

_'Hm...good work Naruto. We couldn't detect the chakra spike this time upon the activation of Rinnegan...you're chakra control has improved '_, thought Kakashi with an eye smile as he saw his prized student perform his only original technique.

_'Here we go'_, thought Naruto as he could see Gaara's youki flowing through his sand before he dashed towards the stunned Suna jinchuriki at blazing speeds, making dust wildly trail behind him while Gaara's red sand came up just in time to clash with the chirping lightning technique.

SQUELCH!

...

...

...

Genma opened his eyes which he had closed because of the dust to see Naruto's lightning crackling hand completely passing through Gaara's defence and embedded into his right shoulder, from which blood now was dripping while the sand user had a stunned look on his face. Naruto's hand still streaking with electricity, was on the other side of Gaara's shoulder who still wasn't moving with his eyes as wide as possible.

"Gaara...n-no...", muttered Temari in a quivering voice while Baki too had his eyes wide.

_'Blood? My...blood? No...no...'_, thought Gaara as his emotions began to dwindle wildly making sand react to it with Naruto's hand still flaring with electricity, his blood quelching hand passing through the right shoulder of Gaara.

"**Blood? Mother...my blood...no way**", said Gaara to himself in his still demonic voice as he continued to stare at the sight of his blood dripping like it was something foriegn...something never seen before.

Naruto's eyes widened though when he felt the youkified sand constrict around his arm and the other two sand hands coming from both sides of him...it was like Gaara was controlling them subconsciously. The blond cursed silently as he closed his eyes, and at the same time closing his bloody hand into a fist which was covered with lightning.

"**Chidori Nagashi! **( Thousand Birds Current)", he exclaimed quietly as electricity began to course through Gaara's body.

"**AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!**", and then came the ear deafning demonic scream of Gaara, making him slowly lose control as sand began to wildly rotate around the pair, the wall constricting more around his arm making Naruto wince in pain. Slamming his other hand on the sand wall of the screaming Gaara, he yelled while spiking his chakra just for a second.

"**SHINRA TENSEI!**"

BHHOOOOM!

Gaara flew back at tremendous velocity while flipping over several times in midair, with even his sand not being able to keep up with him while Naruto too skidded back at high speeds because of some of the technique rebounding on him as he dug his kunai in the dirt to stop himself.

WHAM!

Gaara crashed into several trees, where an area of foliage was placed in the battlefield, and went sailing through like a rag doll before he collided with the wall violently, blood spitting out of his mouth as now the sand caught upto him whereas a large crater now adorned the point of impact.

_'Chidori? I see...Naruto used lightning's tremendous penetrating power as well as his own momentum to seep through his defense...good thinking gaki'_, thought A with a smirk while Hiruzen was having same thoughts whereas Orochimaru had an impressed look in his eyes.

_'That gravitational technique...such raw power! This is much...MUCH stronger than the one Naruto used a few minutes ago'_, thought Mei as she stared at the now still form of Naruto in front of whom were deep skidding foot marks with large amount of dust covering the trailing path of both Naruto and Gaara.

_'Phew...it was getting a bit tight there. But this sand of him...it's creating a lot of damn irritating dust here'_, thought Naruto as he coughed several times before using small wind jutsu to get rid of it...atleast from him.

_'What?'_, he further thought in immense surprise when he saw a blue sheen layer of chakra beginning to slowly form and spread over the stands of the stadium where people were sitting.

**Forests on the Outskirts of Konoha**

"ALRIGHT! KEEP YOURSELVES READY...IT'S ABOUT TIME", yelled one man who had the Iwa symbol engraved on his hitai-ate and was wearing a standard jounin outfit along with many of the shinobi spread over the area there which was just half a mile away from Konoha's north gate. There were a few dead bodies of chunins, who were on their patrol guard duty when they were attacked by these hordes of Iwa and Oto shinobi. Meanwhile there was a large summoning seal in a clearing with several Oto nins there sitting on it's circumference as they waited for the signal to arrive.

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium**

_"I told you Ayumi-chan...damn! I knew this was a bad day"_, he blabbered inside his head to his tenant. First he had seen the whole stand being affected by a genjutsu as the civilians had begun to fall asleep while the shinobi part in the stands had easily broken out of the jutsu. And that's when all hell had broken loose as suddenly some Iwa and Oto shinobi, who were disguised as civilians had started to attack the Konoha nins there.

_"Just calm down okay...look around you, the village is under attack here Naruto-kun"_, she spoke as Naruto started to scan his surroundings, occasionally dodging randomly thrown kunai, shuriken or even paper bomb tags as he drifted around the now sandy battle area. Up there, he noticed that the fire queens except Kurenai, Kushina and Gai were practically ripping through the Oto and Iwa forces, making his eyes widen.

_'Iwa and Oto? What's going on here?'_, thought Naruto as he continued to look wide eyed around him. Ino, Sakura, Shino were now being aided by Kakashi and Kurenai in fighting whom most probably were jounin level. Hinata, Kin and other contestants were having their share of battles too with exception of...Temari and Kankurou? Where were they?

_"Naruto-kun...look up there!"_, upon hearing her voice, he looked up for his eyes to widen. There up on the roofs was a large four-corner sealing barrier, but who were on the inside was what made his breathing hitch in his throat. There inside the structure were all the four kages...no wait. There was Mei, A, his jiji...but the last one he quite didn't recognise from the distance. Applying youki to his eyes, enhancing his sight by several factors...

"That BASTARD!", he growled while clenching his fists. It was Orochimaru who had the tip of a kunai on Hiruzen's neck while there was another well-built man standimg besides him.

Flipping back, Naruto dodged a kunai which was aimed for him.

"Well well...I'm surprised you were able to hurt Gaara", looking over the man, Naruto recognised the shinobi known as Baki, jounin sensei of Gaara's team whom he had met once during the month.

"Baki-san? Why did you attack me?", asked Naruto with narrowed eyes as he took out a kunai before suddenly Genma shunshined in front of him.

"Uzumaki Naruto...listen carefully here. Our village is under attack by Iwa, Oto and Suna", said the senbon chewing proctor making the blond's eyes widen in shock.

_'Suna too? No...no way...then that means...Temari, she was hiding this much from me?'_, he thought with a bit of broken look on his face. He liked her very much...she was always smiling with him, they had spent so much time together along with Kin and Hinata. It was like...a trust had been created between them for they shared everything between themselves.

_'But...it could be that she was forced to do this. I always felt like she wanted to tell me something. Kin I know that she isn't part of this considering that she herself hates her village and Orochimaru'_, he thought as Genma started to speak when suddenly a bruised Kiba landed between them with Akamaru.

"Naruto...what's going on here!", asked the Inuzuka as he stared around in panic and with a bit of fear.

"Inuzuka Kiba...as I said before, our village is under attack by Iwa, Oto and Suna. And as a shinobi of superior rank, I order you to gather the other rookie genins except Uzumaki Naruto and help in the evacuation of as many civilians as possible", he said making Kiba nod a bit hesitantly when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Kiba...don't worry man...they can't take down the leaf that easily you know, just give your best so that I don't have to save your ass again", said Naruto with a smirk while noticing that Genma and Baki had started fighting.

"You bet loser!", exclaimed Kiba with a smirk, determination in his eyes as he jumped out of there whereas Naruto chuckled while muttering 'dog-breath'. Looking up, he gazed towards Kushina who was fighting the enemies like wolfing down her ramen, when she suddenly turned to look at him after defeating one Oto jounin, her eyes filled with worry for him as Naruto smiled reassuringly at her before he saw her tap her side neck with two index fingers.

_"Naru-kun, are you alright?"_, he heard Kushina's voice over the telepathic link that she had opened using the Ushio curse seal.

_"I'm completely fine Kaa-san...but Konoha's under invasion isn't it?"_, he asked more as a statement than anything.

_"Hai...but listen carefully here Naruto, if you have to...then go all out...stay safe Naru-koi and try to save as many people as you can, I have to go now!"_, he heard her speak frantically before she cut the link when suddenly Kushina ducked under a punch to leave a wild uppercut for the Oto one to taste.

BOOM!

Snapping his head to his side, Naruto's eyes widened when he saw a huge surge of red chakra along with an explosion where Gaara was previously slammed into. Focusing his Rinnegan, he saw that it was indeed Gaara who was the cause of the blast, which had wiped out several trees off their barks.

"**There's no way...**", he again heard the familiar demonic voice coming through the explosion induced dust for it to slowly reveal...a pretty disproportionate shadow.

_'His hands...,no his body, what happened to him. I surely didn't hit him that hard for his shadow to look like this'_, thought Naruto with a silly chuckle. Though he could see from the Rinnegan that large amount of youki was coursing through him, healing his wounds at astounding rates. The dust slowly cleared up to show a partially transformed demonic Gaara with an angry look in his face. His half of the body was covered in sand as he continued to raise the amount of chakra.

"**There's no way...THAT I'M GONNA LOSE TO YOUUUUU!**", he yelled demonically as suddenly red chakra, now visible started to wildly rotate around him.

_"What's happening?"_, said Naruto inwardly as he calmly watched the Suna jinchuriki going berserk.

_"He's transforming further Naruto-kun, be careful"_, spoke Ayumi making him nod as he dodged yet round of explosive tags and shuriken which were coming from random directions from the stands resulting in several explosions one after another as now the battle area truly looked like a war zone.

POOF!

Controlling his skidding body, he turned his head to see a large amount of smoke where Gaara was previously standing.

The sudden flow of wind cleared up the smoke to reveal a large...no, a humongous creature which looked to be made up of sand, one tail swishing behind it while there were numerous blue curved marks all over on it.

_"Holy shit...I never would've imagined Gaara capable of taking this form"_, spoke Naruto inwardly with a surprised expression.

_"Well, aside from the mental stress which Shukaku gifts his jailor with...it's power is the easiest to control among the nine bijuu"_, spoke Ayumi with a nod.

"Kami...this kid is going berserk out there", muttered Anko to herself as she stared wide eyed along with every other Konoha nin in the stadium at the giant tanuki which was reaching to the top of the stands.

"Kushina-nee...will...Naruto-kun be able to handle himself?", said Yugao in between her fighting with the Oto nins.

"Don't worry...he should be able to handle the one tailed jinchuriki there...let's just finish these bastards quickly and help the others", said Kushina as she killed another two jounins swiftly before glancing towards the sealing barrier.

**Main Event Stadium-Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

"Orochimaru you bastard...I knew you were upto something!", growled A as he clenched his fists while Mei was standing besides him on the tiled roof with a frown on her beautiful face.

"What is the meaning of this...surely you can't attack directly on the strongest elemental village of the world and hope to win", said the Mizukage with a calculative gaze making the snake sanin, who right now was holding Hiruzen with a kunai on his neck chuckle creepily.

"Kukuku...oh you'll see Mizukage, you'll see. I not only have the power of Oto but also the support of Suna and Iwa", he said making the eyes of the three kages widen in shock.

'_Iwa too? The one standing besides Orochimaru does have the Iwa protector…..though he seems way too quiet while his eyes…..they are hollow, like they are devoid of any life. And I thought he must be a missing nin considering his hitai-ate has a slash across it'_, she thought with a stunned expression as now both Mei and A had discarded their formal robes.

'_Well Suna was expected considering it's financial decline because of lack of any missions…..but I didn't expect that damn old fart of a Tsuchikage to support Orochimaru in this madness'_, thought the Raikage with a frown when he glanced sideways in the direction of where Darui, Yugito and team Bee were taking care of the enemies.

"Orochimaru…..why are you doing this?", said Sarutobi with gritted teeth while his tone held a bit of sadness.

"Oh c'mon sensei…I just came here to greet my old village. I have many fond memories here you know, though I wish I could say hello to Jiraiya and Tsunade too….but oh well, meeting my sensei is enough for me", said the snake sanin who was now wearing the Oto robes while the sound four were holding the barrier. Amonst the sound four, on one corner was standing a readhead teenager with a fiery beauty, a frown on her face as she continuously turned her head, as if she was searching for something.

"Kin-chan...where the fuck are you?", muttered the readhead with concern in he voice while A, inside the barrier was staring towards the unknown man.

"And you, who are you anyway?", said the Raikage while pointing his finger towards the quiet red haired Iwa shinobi who was just staring forward with empty eyes.

"Oh him….well he's just a special arrangement for Naruto-kun", said the sanin with a sinister smirk making the three kages eyes widen as they glanced towards the blurry form of Naruto who was engaging the transformed Gaara in his bijuu state.

"What do you want with him you bastard?", asked Mei with narrowed eyes as she took out a kunai while A's hands too started to crack with electricity.

"Why you….what could you possibly gain from Naruto-kun now? He doesn't possess the curse seal anymore…..isn't attacking Konoha enough for you?", said Sarutobi before he suddenly started to turn brown making Orochimaru's eyes widen as he loosened his grip on the hokage before jumping back. The old kami no shinobi turned into mud before falling to the roof only to appear besides the Raikage with his battle robes, a frown on the usually old & serene face.

"Oh….still haven't lost it I see. Those old bones still has that pathetic will of fire I guess", said Orochimaru with a smirk while the three kages got ready.

"It's about time I rid your existence of this world Orochimaru, something which I should've done years ago. I have made many mistakes but this time I wouldn't hesitate", said Hiruzen with a dead serious expression on his face as he remembered the mistakes he had made concerning Naruto.

"Hn….your right there Hokage-dono…..let's finish this once and for all", said A with a smirk while Mei glanced worriedly in the direction of Naruto who was dodging several swipes, swings, punches, sand shurikens…sending shockwaves through the battle area below which was now looking like a desert with Shukaku in the middle of it.

'_Hm….it seems that the Suna jinchuriki has given control to it's inner demon….this is not good, if it goes on a rampage from here, Konoha will truly be in danger'_, she thought with a frown.

**Konoha: West Gate**

"**KATON:GOUKAKYUU NO JUTSU! **(Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)", exclaimed one Anbu, standing on the roof of a random building as he fired off a huge fireball in the face of a large summoning snake which had crashed through the west gate like it was a piece of butter.

"**FUTON:KAMI KATTANAMI NO JUTSU **(Wind Release: Divine Wave Cutter)", yelled Asuma who had rushed to the west gate when he saw Kushina and the other elite jounins handling things there in the stadium as he blew a chakra enhanced wave of wind from his mouth. The wind natured attack mixed with the fire one, enhancing the fire attack due to its supportive nature as the fireball grew in size as well as intensity, completely incinerating the snake summon as it puffed back into smoke. Meanwhile, the other jounins, chunins and Anbu were fighting the Iwa, Oto & Suna shinobi who had used the snake summon as a diversion and had entered through the broken defence.

"HALT THEM DOWN! DON'T LET THEM GET PAST THIS BORDER DISTRICT!", yelled Ibiki who was standing on one of the roofs as he observed the battle taking place with a frown.

'_This is getting bad…..the Oto and Suna ones are not that strong, but these Iwa ones are really using the earth element to their advantage here'_, he thought before Asuma appeared besides him.

"C'MON YOU GUYS…..LET'S AVENGE OUR FALLEN COMRADES WHOM THE VILE YONDAIME OF THIS VILLAGE KILLED MERCILESSLY, LET'S SHOW THEM THE WRATH OF THE EARTH COUNTRY"_,_ yelled one of the random Iwa shinobi whose group were using one earth technique after another.

"**DOTON:KAJUUGAN NO JUTSU **(Earth Release: Weighted Rock Technique)",one of the Iwa nin yelled who was standing on the border wall before rubbles of fallen chunks of concrete because of the destruction began to hover in midair. Changing the handseal from rooster to snake, he poured more chakra as several large dusty rocks flew at high speeds towards numerous Konoha nin.

CRASH!

"AAAHH!", came the shouts of random shinobi who were hit by the boulders, dying instantly while most of them were injured due to not being completely able to dodge them.

"Ibiki…..we have to do something quick. These Iwa ones are no joke", said Asuma with a serious expression while Ibiki nodded with a calm expression as the Konoha shinobi still continued to fight….if barely.

"Ibiki-san!", both of them turned their heads to see a chunin behind them.

"Report", said Ibiki with a serious aura around him.

"We have the same situations on the North, South and the East gates…..they are attacking from all the directions. The genins are already busy evacuating the civilians….but we need more time before the reinforcements can arrive. Right now….only our basic defence force is on the gates but the Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi, Inuzuka and the Hyuuga clans are busy organizing their forces."

"Alright…..inform everybody guarding the gates to stall the enemies for as long as possible", ordered Ibiki in a firm voice making the chunin nod before he shunshined out.

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium**

BOOM!

Another explosion due to one of Shukaku's attacks rocked the arena as it's tail too wasn't left behind while Naruto continued to dodge as well as throw jutsus one after another, none of them affecting the one tail bijuu.

"**PUNY MORTAL! STOP SO I CAN KILL YOU LIKE THE PEST YOU ARE….HAHAHAHAHA!"**, blabbered the bijuu who was right now in control of his self-induced sleeping host.

"Shit! Why wouldn't this thing just shut up for once", muttered Naruto who was standing sideways on the stadium wall while on the inside Ayumi was getting angry and angrier by the second.

"_That bastard! We were going easy on him and HE DARE SAY THAT TO ME AND NARUTO-KUN! __**I'M GONNA SHOW HIM WHO'S THE PUNY MORTAL!...NARUTO!**__"_, she said with her voice getting demonic as Naruto could feel more and more youki being pushed from the seal in his coils.

"_Um..y-yes?"_, he replied nervously.

"_**FORGET ABOUT WAKING THAT KID UP**__,__**GIVE ME CONTROL FOR A SECOND HERE! I'M GONNA TEACH THIS OVERGROWN RACOON WITH A NUT SIZE BRAIN A LESSON!**__"_, she yelled inside his mindscape as he nodded nonetheless. He knew that demons had pride, and when it came to defending it…..especially when it was concerning Ayumi, he dare not decline her.

"_Alright….but give me a minute please?"_, he said in a bit of pleading tone cause he knew that she was angry by Shukaku's constant insults before dodging yet another one of the bijuu's concentrated blasts of wind resulting in a large hole in the wall.

"**HAHAHAHA…WHOOHOOOO! STOP MOVING YOU INSECT….I'M GONNA KILL YOUUUU"**, screamed the crazy bijuu while laughing maniacally resulting in a tic mark on Ayumi's forehead.

"Ahhh….fuck you!", screamed Hana as she kicked another jounin in the gut sending him flying into the wall.

"Where do these idiots keep coming from anyway? We have to help Naru-kun fight that jinchuriki", asked Anko in frustration as they continued to fight the jounins while Kurenai was using the 'Naked Gai' genjutsu on the enemies making them scream in horror.

"**Tajuu** **Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!**", yelled Kushina while putting large amounts of chakra in the technique….large amount for an average shinobi atleast. The result was hundreds of red haired kunoichi filling the stands making the fire queens look in awe before a grin threatened to split their faces.

"Well….that should do it", muttered Yugao with a smile as she had forgotten from where Naruto had inherited the ability while Kushina's clones started to take on the jounins. Being the kage level kunoichi she was, her shadow clones were easily kicking their asses.

"Kaa-san really is awesome", said Naruto with a smile before his face grew serious.

'_The whole of the village is being attacked. So they have probably broken through the four gates of our village….I have to know what's going on out there too'_, he thought before spiking his chakra just like Kushina.

"**Tajuu** **Kage Bunshin No Jutsu!", **he yelled as just like Kushina, hundreds of blonde doppelgangers appeared in puffs of smoke, filling the desert area.

"ALRIGHT LISTEN HERE GUYS! I WANT YOU TO SPREAD ACROSS THE VILLAGE AND HELP IN FIGHTING THE ENEMIES AS WELL AS EVACUATING THE CIVILIANS!", he screamed when everyone heard shouts of 'YOSH!' and 'YOU'RE ON IT!' before the clones jumped over the wall in different directions.

_"Ayumi-chan...push some of your chakra through the seal will ya?"_, asked Naruto as he immediately could feel the youki flowing through his coils.

"Now here comes the next part….", he muttered to himself before biting his thumb to draw blood. Going through several set of handseals, he yelled…

"**Kuchiyose No Jutsu!**", before slamming his right hand on the ground resulting in a large puff of smoke, almost as large as Shukaku was making it noticeably blink in surprise.

"**Who summoned me?",** came a deep booming voicefrom the smoke screen, which sounded a bit irritated.

"Ah Tianlong-sama...it's me Naruto", came the voice of the blond while Shukaku was blinking in confusion, it's tail anxiously swishing behind him as he waited for the smoke to clear down.

"That guy...he really is reckless", said Hana with a smirk as she glanced sideways while dodging a kunai swipe.

"Stay still you bitch!" yelled the Oto jounin in frustration making Hana narrow her eyes at the racist comment before she moved at blinding speeds to appear in front of him.

CRACK!

Kakashi's face paled as his thighs involuntarily closed, the guys nuts getting punctured as Hana used the fire queen's famous attack. The Oto jounin's mouth was formed in an 'o' shape as he slowly fell to the ground in unimaginable pain.

"There...now I'm standing still you asshole", said Hana with a smirk while Kushina grinned at them in pride.

"**Senei Ta Jashu!** (Multiple Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)", Anko yelled as a large number of black snakes emerged from the sleeves of her trenchcoat to swarm upon the terrified jounins, engulfing them as within seconds they were killed due to the poison.

"Nice work Anko-chan!", said Kushina with a smile as they dashed towards another group of Suna ones which had just arrived.

"Wow...Naru-kun is awesome! Look at that huge thing!", said Anko in her usual enthusiastic tone as they dashed through the stands where civilians were sleeping while Kushina glanced in the direction of where the four corner sealing barrier was, her Sharingan activated before her eyes widened at what she saw.

_'I have to hurry quickly and aid them up there! Who knows what that snake freak has under his sleeves? Naru-kun will handle the one tailed jinchuriki easily, so I don't have to worry about him'_, she thought with a serious expression as they began to attack the enemies mercilessly.

"**Who the fuck is Naruto anyway?**", the summoned creature said with a grunt making Naruto's eyebrows twitch in irritation.

"Tialong-sama...I really don't have time for this. There's a reason I summoned you here you know", he said as the smoke slowly cleared to show a huge blurry figure...which looked to be blue as the smoke continued to clear up slowly.

"**AHAHAHA...c'mon kid, you gotta laugh once in a while you know, you're too dull. Don't you have a girlfriend or something, you seriously need to get laid...HAHAHAAHAHA**", the creature laughed, his voice reverberating through the stadium making Shukaku, who was uncharacteristically quiet, raise an invisible eyebrow at the summon before his eyes widened when he saw the huge figure completely. For in front of him was a giant blue dragon, almost equalling his hieght with Naruto standing on top of it's head. The mythical creature had two large wings with large glowing yellow bolts imprinted on each of them, three sharp claws on each four limbs, it's teeth razor sharp as two fangs protruded out of his mouth, pale yellow scales on the frontal part of his body while his eyes were a light shade of yellow with black slits in each of them along with several battle scars on his body.

Meanwhile Naruto's eyebrows were twitching dangerously, it was always like this. The dragon never left any opportunity to piss him off...and he was not virgin alright! He was gonna reply back when he heard a growl inside his head.

_"__**Naruto...I'm losing my fucking patience here!"**_, he heard before deciding to step things up.

"Look around you...this is seriosly no time for jokes. Konoha is under attack and I need your help Tialong-sama", said the blond jinchuriki making the dragon's eyes widened as he NOW took in his surroundings.

"**Gaki...what is Shukaku doing here? No wait...that kid on the top, he must be it's jinchuriki...then I guess he's given control to Shukaku. But...who could've dared attack Konoha directly?**", said Tialong making Naruto nod seriously.

"It's Orochimaru and he has the support of Suna and Iwa this time...things are really looking grave", said Naruto while clenching his fists in anger as since a few minutes ago, he had started recieving memories from the shadow clones who were working as just information gatherers and was not pleased by what he saw.

"**Alright gaki...guess I'll be taking on Shukaku this time**", said Tianlong with a smirk as he prepared to duel with the bijuu, no fear in his eyes while Naruto just sighed, his spiky locks of blond hair and trenchcoat flowing with the light breeze along with the sand which had filled the area.

"No Tianlong-sama...I want you to go out there and help the others. Although ero-sennin has summoned Gamabunta-sama and is currently helping them, but it is not enough for the sheer number of forces that are putting pressure on the defence line. Besides, your lightning attacks would be extremely effective against the Iwa forces which are proving to be the real threat. I can handle Shukaku here", said Naruto with a dead serious expression as he expected the dragon to immediately yell in protest or straightout deny his request, but Tianlong just staying silent really surprised him.

"**Fine then**", said the summoned creature after a few seconds of silence making Naruto stumble back in shock for he knew how prideful dragons were and just sending them to fight some puny shinobi, as they call them instead of some another strong entity like Shukaku should've greatly angered Tianlong. But he knew that Shukaku's wind attacks would easily defeat the lightning attacks of Tianlong...

"What? No lashing, no protest, no cursing?", exclaimed Naruto making Tianlong chuckle in amusement.

"**You should know kid...we dragons although prideful, are extremely loyal to our Uzumaki summoners. There's a bond of trust, friendship and understanding that develops between a summoner and the summoned...so if I or you don't trust your or mine decisions, then it will never work Naruto", **said the usually carefree dragon wisely making Naruto nod at him, his respect for the lightning type dragon going higher at that instant.

**"WILL YOU IDIOTS QUIT YAPPING AND FIGHT, I ONLY WAITED THIS LONG SO THAT ATLEAST I COULD GET A DECENT FIGHT AND ENJOY MY TEMPORARY FREEDOM**", yelled Shukaku in frustration making Tianlong snort in annoyance at him.

"**Jump kid and leave a shadow clone to guide me...I'm off to my mission**", muttered the dragon in his gruff voice making Naruto nod gratefully with a smile before he summoned a shadow clone who nodded at him. Jumping off the dragon, he landed gracefully on the sand while Shukaku's eyes widened as Tianlong started to flap his wings, creating powerful gusts of wind across the stadium before the dragon took off at surprising speeds for its large size.

"Huh...where's that kick-ass dragon going? I thought it was going to kick that irritating Shukaku's ass?", said Anko in between her fighting questioningly.

"Naruto-kun must have sent it to aid the others in defending the village...the stadium is not the only place being attacked you know", said Kurenai as she trapped one after another jounins in genjutsu before swiftly killing them while A's and Mei's companions too were fighting on the other part of the stadium.

"**Kuchiyose No Jutsu: Watatsumi no Kōteikeibi-in! **(Summoning Technique: Imperial Guards of the Sea God)", came the voice of Naruto as several puffs of smoke filled the area around him.

"Mizuchi, I want you to take your group here and aid Konoha nin in fighting off the Iwa, Oto and Suna shinobi who are invading the village right now. And no questions right now...I'm in a hurry here. The rest of the things my kage bunshin would explain to you guys on the way", said Naruto while he summoned a shadow clone whereas the summoned ones just blinked in surprise and confusion...what was with the hurry? Usually Naruto was cheerful whenever he summoned them but this was the first time they were seeing him this serious...his normally bright blue eyes were now icy cold ones which were filled with utter seriousness.

"Alright Naruto...I understand", said Mizuchi, a red dragon having a typical dragon body with the only difference of one claw on each feet & hands unlike Tianlong, pale yellow scales, a glowing light blue insignia of wind on both his wings signifying him as a wind-type dragon while on the back he had a black Uzumaki's swirling sign, his size almost double to that of Naruto while the other 20-30 dragons were equalling Naruto's hieght. Most of them were of different colours, had different tastes, different attires as some of them had eyepatches in one of their eyes, some having katanas strapped to their backs, some having sunglasses which had made Naruto crack up the first time he had seen those ones, some wearing a kind of black cloth coverings which covered their scales...their upper body almost, some of them had armours with strange triangular rusted shields on their backs but the blond knew what those defences were capable of.

"Moooh...Naruto-sama looks so cute even when he's serious!", said one feminine dragon who was pinkish-red in colour, her bright shining eyes were a beautiful shade of green with black slits while her scales were oceanic blue in colour whereas there was a red scarf wrapped around her neck on which was the stitched Uzumaki swirling sign giving her the title of the most cute female dragon...and she was extremely cute considering how Kushina and the fire queens had almost hugged her to death when they had met her a a few weeks ago. Meanwhile she was watching Naruto with admiration, her size probably the smallest among the other dragons but still on the level of Naruto.

"Oh clamp on it Kiyohime...everything about him is cute to you", said a dragon standing besides her who was a light shade of brown in colour, his scales typical pale yellow in colour while his reddish slitted eyes showed irritation as the dragon flapped his wings to dust off the sand which had accumulated because of the wind.

"That was meeaaan Koryu-kun", she whined making Koryu roll his eyes at her antics, their voices strangely sounding very human without the typical roughness that dragons usually possessed.

"Hmph...you just wait, right now I may be a **rookie claw**...but one day I'm gonna pass through **the** **tri clapperclaw** and ascend to **the fifth blaze. **Then I too will possess a human form just like other female dragons, and then...", she squealed with her clawed hands on her face...squeal?Was that a squeal? Really?

"Nharuto-shama and meh will...", she again squealed while shaking her head, a dark blush now VISIBLE on her face.

"Um...Kiyohime-chan?", she snapped her head out of her daydreams when she heard a familiar voice, her blush darkening when she saw who it was.

"N-Naruto-sama?", she exclaimed while stumbling back a bit making him sweatdrop.

"You might want to go...everybody else has gone", he said while pointing a thumb at the retreating group of flying dragons making her sputter incoherently as she started to flap her wings.

"O-Oi...wait for me guys!", she said before taking off with a 'whoosh' leaving floating dust behind.

"SEE YOU LATER NARUTO-SAMA AND PLEASE BE SAFE!", her voice came making Naruto smile, it immediately faltered though when he saw Shukaku in front of him sleeping, it's snors inducing dust around making Naruto sweatdrop.

"Wow...what a sight, a bijuu and it's host sleeping together peacefully", he said while Ayumi's eyebrows were twitching dangerously when she saw the racoon sleeping like nothing was happening around him.

_"__**That...sandball piece of dried-up shit...ugh! I'm gonna kick his testicles into the next orbit so hard he'll forget he ever had them!**__"_, she muttered with gritted teeth making Naruto cringe at what she had said.

_"Um...I don't think he has testicles anyway"_, he said making her freeze in between her rants.

_**"Ahm...that's what I deduced just now, you didn't need to tell me though"**_, he sweatdropped at her antics.

"Huh? Who were they Kushina-nee?", asked Yugao in confusion as she pointed towards the retreating group of reptiles as she continued to fight, content with just using taijutsu.

"Those dragons...they are what they call the imperial guards of Watatsumi-sama with Mizuchi being their commander", replied Kushina as her clones unleashed a barrage of water techniques upon the incoming jounins who were climbing the stadium wall.

"Watatsumi?", asked Kurenai with a raised eyebrow while she along with other fire queens continued to fight with Kakashi and Gai having their own competition going on.

"Yeah...he's the boss summon for the water type dragons while those dragons you asked about act as his protectors", she replied making her nod in understanding while Hana had began to unleash her clan techniques...though she now regretted leaving her three partners back in the clan compound.

With Naruto, who was taking in the scenes around him, noticed that Baki and Genma were still going at it...it looked like both were equal in skills. Deciding on giving Genma some advantage, he stretched his palm in the direction of Baki's back before muttering.

"**Shinra Tensei**"

"W-What?", exclaimed Baki as he now found himself flying at blinding speeds towards a standing still Genma who had his right fist readied for a punch.

_'What's happening here? Must apply wind chakra... What! This is not working! Kawarimi? Yeah! That should wo-Oh shit too late!'_

WHAM!

CRACK!

Genma's fist crashed into Baki's jaw followed by an audible crunch as the Suna's jounin's bloody teeth flew out like some fairy tail bed story. The after effects of the punch were Baki still flying forward due to the momentum, only this time his body was spiraling up and down at whooping speeds, the jounin unconscious midway in his flat trajectory before he collided violently into the concrete wall upside down, his body embedded into it as chunks of cement flew out. Meanwhile Temari and Kankurou were still in hiding while the other genins including Kin, who had insisted to help had gone to help in evacuating civilians and academy students.

"Nice work Naruto! But that was some force you applied on him...Ow", said Genma with a smile as he shook his right fist to shake off the numbness while the blond just grinned before giving Genma a thumbs up.

"That was one heck of a punch dattebayo!", said Naruto making Genma shake his head at the blond prankmaster's antics...well, there was still some of Kushina's personality left in him atleast.

_"__**FUCK DATTEBAYO NARUTO! I'M TIRED OF WAITING HERE!**__"_, he held his head as Ayumi's booming voice shook the cores of his mindscape before he immediately tapped the Uzumaki seal with his chakra laced index fingers.

"Kai!", he exclaimed as the seal started glowing red.

_"Alright I've activated the seal now Ayumi-chan"_, said Naruto as immediately he could feel an inward pull before he went with it. What Ayumi had forgotten to tell Naruto and Kushina, but had later told them was that via her self created Uzumaki curse seal, she could take control of Naruto's body temporarily...that is if he wanted her to ofcourse.

Shukaku's and almost EVERYONE's eyes widened in the village though when they felt a huge chakra spike...the chakra being of that same malevolent and evil nature. Naruto's body was immediately flaring in youki as his features started to turn animalistic, his eyes blood red with black slits as black outline formed around his eyes. A larger crater formed beneath the Ayumified Naruto due to mind boggling chakra pressure as two red chakra tails sprouted from his hips.

"**Grrrlrrlll...ah, it's good to be free for once...thanks Naruto-kun**", came a feminine voice from Naruto while Shukaku though had a look of fear on his face as he now recognised what had just happened.

PUFF!

"**How did you get out?**", seeing Naruto standing besides her, she asked him in shock.

"The same way you did...used my chakra and a kage bunshin to transfer my soul. Just wanted to see the live action you know", he said with a smirk making the other Ayumified Naruto smirk back at him.

_'Whoa...I really do look scary in youki-mode. Oh well, but atleast better than Gaara though'_, thought Naruto as he jumped back a bit.

"W-What's he doing releasing that much amount of chakra Kushina-nee?", asked Kurenai with widened eyes as all the fights had stopped when they had felt a chakra spike.

"I...don't know", mumbled Kushina as she watched the transformed Naruto intently, confused that he would be making a shadow clone just to make it jump back.

_'What are you upto Naruto?'_, thought Kakashi as he could see youki being the dominant chakra type flowing through Naruto's coils right then with his Sharingan.

"What's he doing? Is he losing control?", asked Yugito while Bee remained uncharacteristically quiet as he observed the transformed Naruto.

**Main Event Stadium: Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

"Ah...it seems Kyuubi is taking over Naruto-kun. Don't you think so sensei?", said Orochimaru to Hiruzen, both of whom had their kunai clinging against each other with sparks flying in random directions.

"Hn...don't underestimate that boy Orochimaru, he's far stronger than you think", said Hiruzen with a smirk.

"We'll see how he goes up against Roshi of the lava release...and then there's Sasuke-kun too", the snake said before both of them jumped back and skidded to a halt while the now defined Roshi was standing still, his eyes still looking empty.

"**Youton:Youkai no Jutsu **(Lava Release: Melting Spectre Technique)", yelled Mei as she released concentrated blasts of lava towards her target.

"**Suiton:Suijinheki! **(Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)", came the familiar voice as a giant water wall rose up to block the lava attack.

"**Raiton:Rairyuudan no Jutsu! **(Lightning Release: Lightning Dragon Projectile Technique)", screamed the Raikage as a blue dragon made up of lightning shot at mind boggling speeds the familiar water user.

"**Mokuton:Mokuheisoku Kabe **(Wood Release: Wood Obstruction Wall)", came another familiar voice as a large thick wood wall erupted from the roof to effectively block the lightning attack. Hiruzen's eyes saddened as he stared at the figures whom Mei and A were fighting with.

_"Hashirama-sensei...Tobirama-sensei...I never thought the day would come where Konoha would have to fight against you too. And it's all because of my foolish student...I'm sorry, please forgive me for I have made so many mistakes in my life...I could not be the leader you guys dreamed of me to become...but now I must kill Orochimaru, something which I should've done a few years ago'_, thought Hiruzen as he saw the Shodaime and Nidaime, who were revived by the use of Edo Tensei, fight in perfect sync with the Mizukage and the Raikage...who had never fought alongside each other, and hence their teamwork against the two lengendary kages & brothers was kinda sloppy.

Meanwhile A, who had his lightning armour activated was getting frustrated cause no matter how many times he hit them, they just kept coming for more. Taijutsu was not effective considering their lost limbs or broken bones just regenerated at astounding rates.

_'Moreover fighting the shodaime and Nidaime of Konoha is something on a whole other level'_, he thought with a smirk while Mei was gritting her teeth.

_'Both of them have almost flawless teamwork...whenever Raikage tries to attack the nidaime hokage to take advantage of his lightning element against the water one, the shodaime interrupts and renders the attack useless with his wood element...and the same is happening with me'_, she thought before gazing worriedly at Naruto...but to be able to help him, she had to defeat Orochimaru here first.

**Main Event Stadium: Battlefield**

"Oh and Ayumi-chan, please hurry for you know the effects of you being in my body for a long time", said Naruto seriously who was standing several meters behind her while she nodded.

"**Yeah yeah I know...this wouldn't take long anyway, right Shukaku-kun?**", said the Ayumified Naruto in a sickly sweet voice who was on all fours, the red chakra still flaring around her in tendrils making Shukaku gulp nervously for he knew just who was talking to him this time...it sure wasn't that blond kid from earlier. The one in front of him maybe just the size of an ant to him...but the amount of power coming out of Ayumi(Naruto) was telling the racoon that size didn't matter in this fight.

"**H-Hey K-Kyuu-chan**", said the one tailed beast weakly as he involuntarily backed away a bit while Gaara continued to sleep peacefully.

**WHAM!**

...

...

...

**CRASH!**

Shukaku miraculously crashed into a wall after being lifted into air, courtesy of an extremely fast punch of youki coming out of Ayumi's(Naruto) stomach, it's impact thunderous leaving someone watching only to imagine just how powerful was that one punch made of chakra was to knock a bijuu of it's feet.

"**And I...hate that name"**

**(UPDATED A/N: Guys PLEASE review cause I don't know but this chapter is getting extremely LOW on reviews as compared to the previous ones...PLEEEAAAASE).**

**I really hope you like this chapter cause some of you were disappointed by the last one. Though I will accept that at some parts, the chapter seems to be rushed...I'm extremely sorry for that though. There would be somethings you might not understand...please wait for them to be explained in future chapters. Also, I don't know if some of you would be frustrated by the mechanisms I put into elemental dragon summonings...but I think it's pretty original too, so don't get flamy on me. Also, if I'm forgetting to explain something...then don't hesitate to ask in a review or in a PM. ^_^ So see you guys later and please REVIEW (puppy dog eyes). So until next chapter(things are getting interesting!), Sayonara and take care! ^_^**

**N6023**


	26. Spiralling Twists

**So hey there guys…..again extremely sorry for the late update T_T. Though now exams have finally ended ^_^ And now I should get back to normal updating speed my friends. Also, I've updated my profile with two of my future fics (summaries basically….on the detailed side thought) at the moment. So thanks for all the reviews and ideas. Hope you enjoy this chapter-**

**Chapter-26-Spiralling Twists! **

"**H-Hey Kyuu-chan**", said the one tailed beast involuntarily as he backed away a bit while Gaara continued to sleep peacefully.

**WHAM!**

….

….

….

**CRASH!**

Shukaku miraculously crashed into a wall after being lifted into air, courtesy of an extremely fast punch of youki coming out of Ayumi's(Naruto) stomach, it's impact thunderous leaving someone watching only to imagine just how powerful was that one punch made of chakra was to knock a bijuu off its feet.

"**And I…hate that name**", she declared with a serious expression(Naruto's face) after landing on the soft sand while Naruto and almost everyone present there had their eyes bugged out anime style.

'_Damn! That…..was something….'_, thought Naruto with a gulp as he saw the wall-slammed form of Shukaku laying there with sand dust revolving around the ichibi.

"Bee…..what's….happening here?", asked Yugao in between her fighting as she continued to duel with the almost unending amount of Iwa and Oto shinobi with Bee and his team too busy in dealing with the enemies.

"I….don't know...but the gaki is giving quite a show", said Bee as he kicked an Iwa shinobi in the gut making the guy fly back into the wall whereas Omoi and Karui had their swords out as they fought together in almost perfect synch while Samui was herself busy in tackling the jounins which were proving to be quite the tough opponents.

'_These are not any ordinary shinobi…..they are well trained in teamwork and they perfecty support each other'_, thought the ice queen of Kumo as she went through a few handseals after seeing an Iwa shinobi cover his hand with chunks of cement using earth chakra.

"**Raiton:Seidenka Suraisusuru **(Lightning Release: Slicing Static Charge)", she exclaimed as her hands started to crack with electricity before dashing towards the ninja. Both of their hands clashed causing a mini-explosion in the stands which were still filled with unconscious people there.

'_NO!'_,thought the clone Naruto with wide eyes as he saw a few civilians getting injured due to small blast making him ball his fists in anger and frustration.

'_This is not helping…..we're not getting anywhere! They are getting caught up in these fights….gotta get them out of here'_, he thought as he turned towards the standing Ayumified Naruto, youki flaring around him as he waited for the dust to clear up around Shukaku.

"S-Shit….", exclaimed the Iwa nin who had his hand electrocuted because of Samui's lightning hand piercing his earth coated hand before the guy slipped into unconsciousness.

"SAMUI…STOP BEING SO RECKLESS! YOU'RE HURTING THESE PEOPLE!", yelled Yugito over several rows making Samui's eyes widen as she turned her head to survey the area which had taken most of the damage to find heavily injured civilians lying, some buried under the rubble making her grit her teeth in anger….her frustration beginning to break her cool exterior.

"Fuck these guys!", she muttered before taking out a katana from a sealing scroll.

"Bee! Can we use youki here?", said Yugito as she kicked an Oto nin in the jaw with the flexibility and agility like that of a cat.

"No….there are people here….and you know that we are not completely in control on our bijuu yet….the bloodlust is too much for us. We would be taking huge risk here and endangering our ally's lives too. Naruto there possesses the Rinnegan…..so let us leave him to use the Kyuubi's chakra and if HE loses control, then we'll have to use it to help him", said the hachibi jinchuriki, for once not rapping in his life making Yugito look towards the blonde jinchuriki while Bee took out five katanas from his back.

'_This is as far as I can go…..five is maximum I've mastered yet. But it should be enough for these mothafucka's'_, thought the Hachibi jinchuriki as he got into his stance confusing the enemies that someone could fight using five swords at once.

'_It's upto you I guess…..Naruto-san…..but I'll give my everything here. Even if we have met only once or twice…..I consider you my friend and would help you in protecting your village'_, thought the Nibi jinchuriki while Nibi, much to her surprise was uncharacteristically quiet inside her mindscape. However, her eyes did widen….along with others when hordes of Suna shinobi with Iwa in the mix started to climp over the roofs and the walls to enter the stadium.

"There's more of them?", exclaimed Hana in surprise while Kushina had a grim expression on her face as she narrowed her eyes.

"ALRIGHT GUYS…..KILL EVERYONE HERE! CIVILIANS, KONOHA, KIRI OR KUMO SHINOBI….IT DOESN'T MATTER! DON'T SHOW THESE BASTARDS ANY MERCY!"

"YEAH! LET'S GET THEM! LET THAT YONDAIME UP THERE SEE THE DESTRUCTION OF HIS BELOVED VILLAGE!"

"**DOTON: DORYOU DANGO **(Earth Release: Mausoleum Earth Dumpling)**"**

"**FUTON: GUFUUKA **(Wind Release: Typhoon Vortex Technique)", yelled some of the shinobi in midair as they mercilessly started to unleash their attacks….destroying anything, anyone that they saw making Kushina grit her teeth in anger as she clenched her fists, drawing blood due to the pressure.

"It's time….", she muttered after taking a deep breath, mentally commanding her shadow clones who had just taken out the previous enemies to carry the civilians out of the arena while Kakashi, the fire queens and Gai too started to take on them, all the while trying to preserve their chakra for later if needed by only resorting to taijutsu.

Kushina though jumped back from the battle to a secluded area in the stands which were littered with dead bodies of Konoha, Iwa and Oto nins, before tapping her chakra laced index and middle finger on the Ushio curse seal making it glow.

"_Naruto-kun….listen here!"_, she called mentally with a bit of panic in her voice after opening the telepathic link with her eyes widening though when she heard Ayumi's demonic voice over the link.

"_**It's me Kushina-chan…..I've temporarily taken over Naruto-kun's body. He's right now in control of the shadow clone behind me"**_, Kushina just nodded without any further thoughts, she would've yelled at her if the situation was not that urgent for she knew how damage Naruto's body took because of overflow of youki through the blonde's chakra coils even if Ayumi took over for a few minutes.

"_Just listen…..release that seal, it's the perfect time now. I'm doing it from my side here too"_, she spoke before cutting the link abruptly while taking out a small sealing scroll from her utility belt.

"**Hmph…always being bossy! Naruto-kun…..I'm releasing that seal….your Kaa-san's orders**", said Ayumi in a mocking voice over her shoulders making the blonde roll his eyes at her before he nodded at her as he turned around to get ready…..the groups of Iwa and Suna shinobi approaching not only him…but the Kushina's and Bee's group too in the stands along with other Konoha jounins who were there fighting too.

Meanwhile shukaku slowly got up….the sand around him falling apart as it again stood on all fours, it's chakra still rising while Ayumi just ignored him.

"**Ahh….finally up eh sandball. Just wait a sec here….**", said Ayumi with a smirk making the racoon narrow his eyes at being called a sandball, it's chakra rising rapidly while the enemy nin had malicious smirks on their faces as they saw the one tailed beast power up.

Just like Kushina, Ayumi took out a small sealing scroll from Naruto's utility belt before unsealing another large sealing scroll, almost the size of Naruto which she easily picked up before slamming it onto the sandy surface. Quickly going through handseals, she bit Naruto's thumb before opening the large scroll which contained several complex seals in a circular structure with a large kanji for clone in the middle. Swiping Naruto's blood on the kanji, she spiked her youki before yelling.

"**KAI**"

"KAI", both Ayumi and Kushina yelled at the same time as everyone present there felt the two huge chakra spikes in the stadium.

**PUFF!**

The stadium and the stands were filled with large amounts of smoke which had almost filled the huge stadium making the Iwa and the Oto nin's eyes widen as they could feel the sudden increase in chakra…..it was HUGE!

"W-What the fuck's happening here? T-This c-chakra…..it's humongous!", said one jounin who was sweating bullets under the amount of chakra and killer intent they were feeling.

"Naruto-san….and Kushina-sama….both of their charka levels have sky rocketed suddenly. What's happening here?", mumbled one Konoha jounin in shock as other chunins and jounins too were awed by the sudden increase in chakra.

"Kushina-nee…..what's happening?", said Anko with widened eyes, who along with almost everybody there couldn't see anything due to the overwhelming amount of smoke that had filled the arena out of thin air.

"Don't worry Anko-chan….everything's under control. It's just something I created with Naruto….it's gonna take care of these constant incomings", the fire queens heard Kushina's calm voice through the smoke as they just stood where they were, not being able to see anything while the Suna nins had started using one after another wind techniques to clear the smoke which had filled the arena….but it sure was taking time considering the amount of it.

"Impossible!",exclaimed Kakashi with his sharingan eye widened as he gazed at the huge amount of chakra networks which had suddenly popped out of nowhere.

"Kakashi….what's wrong?", came Yugao's voice from nearby as Kakashi just turned his head to look down at the battle arena, his eyes widening further.

"Clones….shadow clones…..about hundred of them in total I think…", he trailed before he heard the confused voice of Kurenai from another direction as the smoke now slowly started to dissipate.

"What's so surprising about it then…..Kushina-nee and Naruto-kun can create thousands of shadow clones….what's a hundred of them?", he shook his head out of his trance like state upon hearing her question.

'_I never knew….these guys are truly something, to be able to achieve something like this….it's amazing!'_, he thought when just as he was about to reply to Kurenai's question, all of them heard Kushina's voice as now slowly they could see through the earlier impenetrable fog.

"Those clones are not ordinary Kurenai…..the amount of chakra they possess is way above than any normal shadow clone ever created", making their eyes widen before Kakashi spoke.

"The amount is what a typical elite jounin possesses…..and considering that they are of Naruto and Kushina….you can imagine how deadly they are", said the copy ninja with traces of shock still in his voice while the ones who heard him had their jaws on the ground. They knew the result of such feat…..DISASTROUS!

"Damn! I should've done that too! Hey Kakashi….why didn't you ever try sealing shadow clones in a sealing scroll?", questioned Anko making the elite jounin shake his head in exasperation.

"Anko….what you're talking about is not so easy. You see….when you seal shadow clones in a normal sealing scroll, they'll just be dispelled after some time…..hence the only thing you'll unseal the next time is only chakra and not solid clones. But Kushina-nee and Naruto-kun here….have not only successfully sealed and unsealed a shadow clone, but they've also slowly increased the amount of chakra given to a shadow clone slowly over a period of time. To do this and to maintain this technique for such a long period of time…..like for one month, you need a special seal…..a real special and an extremely complex one", said Kakashi when he heard Kushina.

"Sharp as ever Kakashi-kun…though they are still some things you left, but let's leave that for another day ne?", said Kushina with a smile before her expression turned serious. The smoke now almost completely gone…..everyone could see about fifty clones of Naruto on the sandy arena while Kushina's clones were amongst the stands up there.

"Huh…..just for some clones you wasted so much chakra? You're an even bigger idiot than I thought!", said one Iwa nin with a smirk when he heard one of his comrades.

"Hey…..look closely…those clones, they look….like yondaime? No….they look exactly like yondaime!", making the other's eyes widen as they could now see the standing clones of Naruto, all of them having serious expressions on their faces as they just stood still.

"My god….he's alive! But how….he was killed thirteen years ago, this isn't possible!", said another Iwa one as they stared with wide eyes at the small army of their seemingly scorned enemy.

"This is great…just fucking GREAT! The bastard's alive!", yelled another as they were now several meters away from the standing clones who were now spread over the sandy battlefield.

"Why isn't he using that cursed technique of his then…..where's the yellow flash we've been hearing so much about since the shinobi war?", came the voice of another one when suddenly one of them dashed at blinding speeds towards the clones, his eyes full of hatred as he took out a kunai.

"IT DOESN'T MATTER TO ME! HE'S ALIVE AND I'M GONNA MAKE SURE HE DIES TODAY! THIS IS FOR MY BROTHER YOU KILLED YOU BASTARD!", the others too immediately dashed behind him, their eyes containing anger and hatred while the Suna nins decided to stand their ground under the order of their jounin commander.

'_Idiots….letting their hatred control them….who knows how much stronger those clones are. To create such large amount of smoke, in addition to using huge amounts of chakra and creating only fifty shadow clones? They must be ridiculously strong'_, thought the jounin leader as he signaled the troops behind him to stand their ground.

"DIE YOU SON OF A BITCH!", said the same one who was in the front as he slashed the clone with the kunai at high jounin speeds…..or attempted to.

WHOOSH!

His eyes along with the ones behind him widened when they saw the clone in the front easily grab his arm, the tip of the kunai just centimeters away from the clone's cold blue eyes.

'_Impossible! He grabbed his hand! How can a clone be that fast?'_, thought one Iwa shinobi who had immediately stopped in his mid-dash along with other hundred or so Iwa shinobi, their eyes as wide as possible.

"Son of a bitch huh? I don't like hurting people…but for that comment, you'll die painfully…very painfully…", said the clone as the jounin tried to free his arm from the seemingly iron grip, his voice sending chills down the Iwa nin's spine.

Using his other hand to form a half ram seal, another shadow clone popped behind the jounin making other's expression turn into that of shock, specially the Iwa ones.

'_A shadow clone created another shadow clone…..no wait! He didn't waste any chakra earlier, he put all of it in these clones…but such large amount should have made them unstable leading to them just puffing back, how can he maintain the technique at such high chakra levels with such low number of clones?'_, thought one of the Iwa jounins who was in front of their group which had stopped while the Suna ones were behind them as they waited for the right moment to strike.

The clone holding the hand of the struggling jounin put his other palm on the jounin vest of nin where his heart was located while the just created clone too put his palm at the same place from behind.

"W-What are you doing te-teme!", stuttered the jounin who was sweating bullets as he continuously tried to get his arm free before he heard both the clones speak simultaneously.

"**Shinra Tensei"**, the jounin's eyes immediately widened in immense pain as his body was pushed from both sides, the pressure being too much even for his trained body to handle.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH"

SPLURCH!

"H-He…..you b-bastard, you're gonna pay for this!", yelled one trembling jounin as he watched the gruesome display of his comrade's body getting squished by some unknown force, his blood splattering all over the clones as his crushed body now laid limp on the sand.

"**Ooh…now that's something!**", squealed Ayumi in glee as she watched Naruto kill off an enemy in a pretty bloody way…..she was a bijuu and it was a pretty sight of her enemy's blood spraying in the air.

"N-Naruto…..", stuttered Kurenai in shock as she had watched the thirteen year old genin brutally take down an Iwa jounin, the now standing blood soaked clone visible to everyone.

"Concentrate Kurenai-chan!", the genjutsu mistress snapped her head on hearing Kushina's voice to see the other troops of Suna and Iwa coming towards them while Bee's side were already engaging the new arrivals. Meanwhile Anko, Yugao and Hana too had surprised expressions that Naruto could get this bloody…but considering his childhood, they should have known that he could get this way. Kakashi though had a hardened expression as he continued to fight through the enemies with his Sharingan activated while Gai too wasn't left behind, both having expressions of veteran shinobi who had been through war.

"So the rumours were true…..Uzumaki Kushina is alive after all", said one Iwa jounin who was standing on the wall along with the others as they just observed the crazy battle going on in the stadium….whether it be the roofs, stands or the battle grounds.

"HEY…..THAT"S UZUMAKI KUSHINA! THE RUMOURS WERE TRUE AFTER ALL, BE EXTREMELY CAREFULLY WHILE FIGHTING HER AND TRY NOT TO ENGAGE HER IN COMBAT SINGLE HANDEDLY", yelled another Iwa nin from one of the group of Iwa and Suna shinobi amongst the seven to eight groups who were dashing towards Kushina's group through the stands…..though judging from the amount of clones of Kushina, they had to take them down first.

"This guy…..I just fucking hate him! You don't know how much I hate you….I despise your existence….I WISH YOU'D ROT IN HELL!", spat an Iwa nin amongst the standing ones on the sandy ground before all of them ran full speed towards Naruto's clones, their forms only visible as blurs as sand trailed behind their dashing forms.

"ALRIGHT….MOVE FORWARD! WE GOTTA TAKE OUT THESE CLONES FIRST!", shouted the Suna jounin commander of the present standing troop before they too dashed forward…..several of them already going through handseals as they prepared for their techniques.

"I'm sorry for killing your comrade in such a way….but it was personal here", the now bloodied clone spoke as the ones behind him just stayed silent.

"MARCH FORWARD EVERYONE, AND DON'T HOLD BACK!", yelled the clone which had Naruto's original soul who was standing beside Ayumified Naruto. The unsealed clones immediately dashed at blazing speeds towards the approaching enemies, all of their Rinnegan activated as they took out their kunai with some of them going through handseals midway to tackle the 100-200 jounins in front of them.

"Ayumi-chan…..you better hurry up. My body wouldn't able to hold you much longer", said Naruto as he gazed sideways towards Ayumi who was facing Shukaku, the bijuu strangely just standing there as he watched the crazy onslaught going there with glee in his eyes.

'_Something's wrong here! My clones, the summons and the clan members are successfully holding down the defenses at the four gates of the village…..then how are these guys coming in. It's inside the walls, someone is deliberately letting them enter the village…..it must be an underground passageway or something. Dammit! I cannot use the earth element upto full extent yet too!'_, thought Naruto with gritted teeth when he heard Ayumi's serious voice.

"**Alright Naruto…..I'm gonna finish this with one blow and teach that raccoon a lesson once and for all. Though I advise you to keep your distance from me for this attack**", nodding immediately, Naruto jumped back several metres away from Ayumi before he started running up the wall using chakra in his feet.

'_If what I think she's going to do is correct….then it's best if I get some height here'_, said Naruto mentally to himself as he stood on the wall before jumping on the roofs of one of the balconies, his trenchcoat flowing with the wind as he gazed down upon the battle going in the stadium. It was like a carnage, broken kunais, paper bomb tags here and there, shuriken embedded into the walls and the ground, dead bodies lying everywhere while the atmosphere reeked of blood making Naruto clench his fists as he gritted his teeth.

'_This is madness! This war….so many people are getting killed from both sides. What would anyone gain from this except possibly Orochimaru? Both parties are losing people….their relatives….this will only give birth to more hatred. What will happen next? Probably then Konoha will attack either Iwa, Suna or Oto…..will this ever end?'_, thought the blonde jinchuriki with his eyes clenched shut as he gritted his teeth. Opening his sapphire ones slowly, he gazed at all the dead Konoha shinobi….his eyes containing sadness and remorse for not being able to protect them. Most of these people he knew although hated him…but few amongst them had accepted him and started to see him as a hero…..and though he didn't ask for it, but still if felt good to be seen as someone important. And now that same hero was just standing there on the roof doing nothing….he could only watch as hundreds of shinobi fought for apparently no reason….many of his comrades getting killed out there. But he knew he couldn't protect all of them….and it frustrated him to no end!

"You shouldn't let your guard down…..Uzumaki Naruto", his eyes widened when he felt two soft arms wrap around his neck.

"Wh-What?", stuttered Naruto as he tried to move swiftly before the gentle grip suddenly turned into that of a steel one, making him just stay rooted to his spot when he felt the body of the one behind him on his back.

'_She's a female'_, his perverted side immediately deduced upon feeling her curves and her mounds pressed against his back…..and boy was her body soft and it felt extremely good!

"Don't try to escape Uzumaki…..you can't….not from me atleast", he now took notice of her soft angelic voice, her mouth being only centimeters away from his ears, her hot breath tickling his skin.

"W-Who are you?", stated Naruto a bit weakly as he slowly turned his head to catch a glimpse of a grey-black hooded cloak, completely shadowing the stranger's face before he felt a soft hand on his whiskered cheek.

".Nah….not yet Uzumaki….though I gotta admit, you're cute", she said with a giggle making Naruto blush a bit while noticing that she still had an iron grip on him.

"So….", she started while putting her head on his shoulders as he stared sideways to see her cloak with only some bangs of white glowing hair visible to him.

'_Wow….she smells….heavenly'_, the blonde thought subconsciously as he turned his head to get more of this…..alluring scent.

"How's defending your village going?", she asked out of nowhere making his eyes widened as he snapped his head back to see the battle with Ayumi having created a small, rasengan sized black ball of condensed chakra just above Naruto's mouth while Shukaku too was creating one although larger in size, his version less condensed.

"Ohh….so you've given control to your tenant eh? And what's more…..we're getting a bijuu showdown here. Both of them using tailed beast bombs…..don't you think that you're risking a lot of property damage here….hmm?", she asked having a bit of playfulness in her voice as she continued to rub his whiskered cheeks making Naruto feel good….she sure was skilled at it.

"N-No…..what matters is the lives of villagers….these buildings can be built again….shukaku needs to be taken down, and besides Ayumi-chan wanted to come out for a bit", said the blonde before his eyes suddenly widened when he saw four to five Suna and Iwa jounins coming their way through the rooftops. Naruto tried to get free of her grip, but she still held onto him tightly before he heard her whisper.

"Calm down….just watch", he turned his head sideways before his breathing hitched in his throat when he saw several spikes made of ice sprout from the tiled roof to brutally impale the jounins, their blood splattering on the tiles as they died instantly.

"Wasn't that fun?", she spoke while Naruto could practically feel her smiling as his expression turned serious.

'_Ice….and she didn't even do any handseals! Whoever she is….she's strong, very strong….her chakra is of special type I can tell'_, he thought before deciding to take matters further….they were in a middle of war-like situation here, so he couldn't play around.

"You still haven't told me who are you? Are you an ally…or an enemy?", the blonde said with a cold voice as she continued to rub his cheek softly.

"Hmm….I'm definitely not your enemy Uzumaki….though I cannot say anything about the ally part too. But….look down below…..all the carnage….all the destruction….all your comrades dying down there. Does it hurts?", she said making Naruto watch down as he saw the battle, the stadium full of explosions in random locations and screams of pain & anger.

"Look forward….you're jiji, the Mizukage and the Raikage…they seem to be struggling too", Naruto's eyes widened as he immediately activated his Rinnegan to see, indeed Orochimaru was having the upper hand there. Mei and Raikage just weren't being able to counter the shodaime and nidaime's teamwork. Whatever damage they were doing…the revived kages were just regenerating instantly.

'_I completely forgot about them! But…..what's going on there? Who are the other three guys? That…..oh c'mon, this isn't possible! They're dead!'_, he thought in frustration as he clenched his fist, still not being able to escape the strangers grip.

".go!", the blonde said through gritted teeth as he tried to get out of her grip when he for the first time heard the serious tone in her voice.

"Uzumaki…..stay calm, you're losing it", she said when Naruto immediately yelled.

"How can I stay calm when so many people are dying out there huh! This is my village and I'M GONNA PROTECT IT!", he said as he tried to raise his chakra levels.

'_Dammit! Ayumi's still in control of my real body….this clone's just not strong enough'_, thought the struggling blonde jinchuriki when he again heard her speak.

"I already told you…..I'm not your enemy Naruto. So tell me…..who do fight for? What do you fight for? Why are you trying so hard for the village that has scorned you since you were born?"

'_How does she know about me so much?'_

"I've already said this before….I fight to protect my precious people, and to stop this useless fighting, this bloodshed and endless hatred", said Naruto with a fierce voice, his eyes shining with fired up determination while the woman's hand started to cup his chin.

"Hmm…admirable indeed. I knew that….but I needed to hear that from you. But let me tell you….you're close Uzumaki….you just need a little more push, and then you'll be able to stop this invasion I think. And remember, that push….only the people who are closest to you can provide…so keep your loved ones close….we'll meet again…Naruto", his eyes widened when her hands slowly turned into snowy flakes. Turning back with a whip, all he saw were white snowy flakes revolving around him before they settled down on the ground.

'_Nice exit though'_, the blonde mused subconsciously.

**BOOM!**

Naruto jerked his head back when he heard a HUGE explosion take place behind him, all he saw was huge amount of dust arising from where Ayumi and Shukaku were standing….probably the aftermath of a devastating attack. Immediately activating his Rinnegan, he saw one bright source of youki while the other one was slowly diminishing.

'_Guess….her work is done'_, he thought with a smirk before the clone puffed into smoke abruptly from the roof. The next thing the original Naruto saw was…..dust, lots of it making him cough as he did a minor wind technique to get rid of it.

'_Hmm….Naruto and Ayumi seem to have control of their situation while mine and sochi's clones would keep these incomings at bay. Guess it's time for me to help jiji up there'_, thought Kushina as she watched her clones and her group continue to fight with the invaders.

"Anko-chan…I'm going up there to help jiji with Orochimaru…..I know you guys can handle things here", yelled Kushina with Anko being the nearest to her.

"But…..how would you penetrate that barrier…the Anbu have been like….trying forever to get inside it!", yelled the snake mistress back in between her taijutsu duel with the jounins while Kushina just smirked back as she gathered water natured chakra beneath her feet.

"Hmm…..you think I can't penetrate a sealing barrier Anko-chan?", said Kushina making Anko smirk back…..oh well, may Kami have mercy on Orochimaru then.

THWOOSH!

SPLASH!

The sound of Kushina rocketing upwards due to a laser-type jet stream of water emitting from her foot and the water splashing on the floor almost reverberated through the arena, the Uzumaki kunoichi going at rocketing speeds towards where the kage royale was taking place on the opposite side. Some of the shinobi there noticed a stream of water with a red haired kunoichi travel at blinding speeds mid-air across the stadium making them slack jawed.

"Damn…..wish I could do that", muttered Naruto when he heard his tenant's cheerful voice.

"_Mission accomplished Naruto-kun!__**"**__, _Ayumi's satisfiedvoice vibrated through his mindscape making him realize that he was back in his original body. The dust in front of him slowly revealed a disproportionate Shukaku who was embedded into a wall, a large…..LARGE hole in the middle of what seemed to be his stomach. Following the hole, Naruto noticed that the concrete was almost completely destroyed with the attack destroying many buildings and other properties as far as his eyes could see.

"_Ayumi-chan…..I think you went too far"_, said Naruto with twitching eyebrows as he saw the trail of destruction her attack had left.

"_Hehe….well, originally I didn't meant for my tailed beast bomb to be that strong. But that shukaku-baka fired his own weak one….so to completely overpower his attack, I had to…..you know, power up a bit"_, she said with an apologetic tone making Naruto sigh…..oh well, it's not like he could stay mad at her anyway.

"_Fine fine….but….."_, trailed Naruto as he immediately started coughing violently.

"_Naruto! Hey….you alright?"_, hearing Ayumi's concerned voice, Naruto answered immediately.

"_I….don't know….what did you do?"_, spoke Naruto inwardly as he now started coughing blood making Ayumi worry for him all the more.

"_I-I…..but this never happened before!"_, she replied, her voice panicking as Naruto was now on his knees, drops of blood falling on the sandy surface.

"_But you never used tailed beast bomb before too…moreover, you used extra youki to make it stronger…..of course my body's not ready yet to handle the stress of such a great attack"_, said the blonde inwardly as he struggled to stand up again.

"_Naruto...I'm sorry! I…I really didn't know this….t-that this would happen"_, she spoke frantically, her voice dripping with concern making Naruto mentally chuckle as he increased the flow of his white chakra coils, making him feel much better.

"_Calm down worryfart…..such emotions don't fit the queen of all bijuu"_, said the blonde as he now stopped coughing blood…but was now holding his stomach.

'_What happened exactly here? I feel weak….what's happening to me? It's like all of my strength is slowly leaving me'_, thought Naruto as he now noticed the lying unconscious form of Gaara just near the destroyed wall, Shukaku's form now only remaining as sand.

"_Naruto-kun please…..I'm worried here! You're mindscape has also started to waver here….what's happening to you?"_, he heard Ayumi's quivering voice as he now stood up a bit weakly. The blonde jinchuriki slowly started to walk towards the unconscious form of Suna jinchuriki as he slowly again increased the chakra through his coils putting a stop on the worsening conditions.

"_Now? It should've stopped now….the mindscape, it should be alright now"_, said Naruto inwardly as he continued to slowly walk towards Gaara, his steps wavering a bit.

"_You idiot! I'm not worried about any fucking mindscape….you're just using your chakra to hold yourself but it's clear that something's not right here. These effects…..these aren't because of my tailed beast bomb….I'm sure of it! Something or someone else is causing this"_, she said with frustration as Naruto just ignored her and kept walking forward, looking over his shoulder…..he noticed that the unsealed clones of him and Kushina were successfully holding the incoming attacks.

'_I gotta continue…there's no time for me to stop. Everyone needs my help'_

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium: Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

"Ah….so the great Uzumaki Kushina graces us with her presence", said Orochimaru with a smirk as he saw Kushina standing besides Hiruzen with a serious expression on her face while Mei and A too were standing beside them…both of them sporting a few bruises here and there. Besides Orochimaru, we find completely unharmed Hashirama and Tobirama standing there…..along with a standing still Roshi who was at one of the corners.

"Jiji….now care to explain me why are we fighting the supposed dead Shodaime and Nidaime here", said Kushina as she glanced sideways to see Mei and A panting a bit.

"He has developed another forbidden technique which helps him revive the dead people and control them to his will", muttered the old hokage with a grim expression as he continuously watched Orochimaru for any sneak attack.

"Also….physical attacks on those revived are useless…..any damage done to them, they will brush it off by regenerating instantaneously…..though having you by our side now would make things easier", said Mei as she smiled at Kushina who smiled back at her. Naruto had told Kushina that he considered Mei very precious to him….and anyone precious to her son was her friend atleast.

"Oh….and what do I see here, the great taijutsu master of the lightning country all wounded and bruised up here?", said Kushina with a smirk making A's eyebrows twitch, who still had his lightning armour on.

"Just shut up…..it's not my fault that all of my attacks are going in vain here, no matter how strong they are", said the yondaime raikage with a grunt while Mei smirked at him, inside laughing at the muscle guy.

"Well…someone did said that brains is more effective than brawn", the cheeky retort had Mei almost burst out laughing while a vein popped on the Raikage's forehead.

"YOU WANT A PIECE OF SOME BRAWNS HERE KUSHINA", yelled A comically while Kushina just looked at him innocently, her hands in front of her defensively.

"Hey….I was only joking here. Geez! Talk about a non-sense of humour", the Uzumaki prankster again said with even more innocent face than before. Mei though couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing while A was barely holding himself together…..his face red in anger whereas the professor just sighed while shaking his head.

'_Youngsters these days….back in my days we….hey, why do I think I sound like someone idiotic?'_, the sandaime hokage mused while stroking his chin.

"Kukukukuku….I have to admit this Kushina….you sure are good at pulling other's leg…..painfully", said the snake sanin with a sadistic glee before Kushina retorted.

"You want me to pull your third leg you pedophile…painfully?", she deadpanned as immediately A, Mei and even Hiruzen started to laugh hysterically at the snake freak.

"AHAHAHAHA….take that you bastard", yelled the Raikage with laughing tears in his eyes while pointing his finger at the pissed off sanin.

"Hehehe….heheheheh"

"Heheheheheh"

Everyone turned their heads for their jaws to slam on the ground when they saw the Nidaime and the Shodaime chuckling while STILL keeping that straight empty expression on their faces.

"W-What…..hey stop laughing you idiots!", said Orochimaru while even the sound four blinked at the comical scene going on in there.

"Wow….I made dead men laugh…that's definitely some achievement", muttered the Uzumaki redhead to herself in amazement before she heard Orochimaru strangely chuckle to himself.

"I was waiting for this one…..let's see you guys laugh after this one", the sanin said, already midway of several set of handseals before he slammed both of his hands on the roof leading to creation of two puffs of smoke.

"A summoning jutsu?", said A with quirked eyebrow while Kushina just watched with a dead serious expression, her sharingan activated.

'_But….I don't see any chakra'_, thought the female Uzumaki in confusion, when they suddenly heard the sound of wood falling on the roof making them confuse all the more. The smoke though slowly dissipated for Hiruzen's and Kushina's eyes to widen….as wide as possible as they stood frozen on their spots.

"THAT BASTARD!", yelled A with gritted teeth as he punched a hole in the roof.

"He made us think it was a summoning technique…but on the other hand it was his impure world resurrection technique. I can't believe it…..we got fooled by a couple of smoke bombs", mumbled Mei to herself with a shocked expression on her face.

"I should've known he would revive more people….if I had known I immediately would've destroyed those caskets before he could open them just like the last one", A muttered in frustration when Mei spoke back.

"Well….he was the most genius of the three sanins", she replied while watching, confused as to who these two entities were.

"No….how? Where…did you get their DNA's from?", whispered Hiruzen before his voice got loud while Kushina was frozen into a trance like state as she continued to watch the two figures with wide eyes, her mind now blank as she tried to come to terms with the situation which had presented itself.

"Y-You bastard….how dare you? HOW DARE YOU?", yelled Kushina after breaking out of her state, her eyes showing the immense amount of rage and anger with the three tomoes of her sharingan spinning wildly.

"Ahh….so the information of you possessing the sharingan was correct after all. No matter…..let's see how the legendary Uzumaki Kushina fares against these two. Roshi!", the snake sanin said with a smirk before yelling over his shoulder.

"Hai Orochimaru-sama", came the gruff voice of the gobi jinchuriki for the first time who was kneeling down besides the sanin.

"I think it's time for you to do your mission", spoke Orochimaru making the jinchuriki in front of him nod without any hesitation. Turning his head, the sanin signalled the sound four before slowly a human sized circular hole opened up in barrier behind the first newly formed Otokage.

The others watched as the Iwa jinchuriki blurred out to jump through the hole and outside into the sandy battle arena making them confused as to what Orochimaru was planning now.

'_Where is he…Naru-koi! That bastard…..he's targeting Naruto!'_, thought Kushina with gritted teeth when her sharingan activated eyes widened as she saw the weak chakra signature of Naruto down there….his chakra now very low.

"What…..what's happening to him? His chakra was almost full just a few minutes ago…but now it seems he doesn't have any chakra left", she muttered with a shocked expression on her face as her heart started to race faster in worry for him…..her face slowly showing the amount of panic she was experiencing.

"Jiji…..I'm sorry but you gotta handle things here. But don't worry….I'll be back as soon I'm done helping Naru-kun", she spoke frantically before dashing towards the barrier wall.

"Not too fast Kushina….", said Orochimaru with a smirk when suddenly out of nowhere huge water walls appeared…..covering all the barrier walls and hence obstructing their view of the battle going outside there in the stadium.

Kushina skidded to a halt as she gritted her teeth, tightly clenching her fists before she turned around to glare at Orochimaru with pure hatred in her eyes who was just smirking back at her. Turning her eyes, she noticed that it was the work of Nidaime who had his hands in ram position.

"I see that you have so little faith in your son Kushina", spoke the sanin with a chuckle making her eyes widen in surprise.

"How did you know-"

"Oh c'mon…..I'm not that stupid. I have my sources Kushina…..he's your son alright"

"Fine then…..I guess I'll have to end this quickly!", she growled, her chakra levels already rising through the roofs making Orochimaru smirk.

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium: Battefield (Outside the Barrier)**

The battle was still raging on endlessly with the remains of kunai, katanas, shuriken, dead bodies increasing while you could see the same cloaked stranger standing on one of the roofs, her eyes glowing blue in colour with the hood still in place.

'_Hm….this should be fun. A kage battle grand royale…..now if only Naruto was there too. The process has already begun…..the effects are showing now. You're ready now Naruto…..just a little more'_, she thought with a smile as she continued to watch the water wall'ed barrier structure…..as if her glowing eyes were able to penetrate the water cover which were acting as curtains.

"Naruto-kun…are you sure you're alright?", opening his eyes, his vision now blurry, the blonde just smiled back at Temari as he tried to sit up.

"_Naruto-kun…what's happening? You're scaring me now! You can't even stand properly now! What's wrong with you! You're condition is getting worse by the second! You can't even activate the Rinnegan now!"_, Ayumi spoke frantically, her quivering voice indicating that she was already in tears while the blonde again started coughing, his trenchcoat now completely dirty because of the sand, beads of sweat dropping from his chin as Naruto continued to pant.

'_What's happening to me?'_, the blonde thought in confusion….even his mind was slowing down. It was getting ridiculous….out of nowhere, in just five minutes, his strength had degraded from jounin level to even lower than a civilian level. He wasn't even able to stand up. Though slowly opening his eyes, he saw a concerned face of Temari looking down at him with his head resting on her lap. Diverting his gaze to sideways, he saw Kankurou standing there with a serious expression on his face, who was carrying Gaara on his back piggy back style.

"Temari! Let's just go…..we have to get outta here. You yourself said that you didn't want to be a part of this invasion right?", said the puppet user with a hardened expression. He didn't resent Naruto or anything….but they had to leave or else they too would be dragged into the battles and Gaara was already injured.

"G-Go Temari…I understand t-that you didn't w-wanted to b-be a part of this. J-Just go…..I'll h-handle myself", muttered Naruto with his eyes already now half closed, his voice weak as he continued to pant heavily.

"No…..I'm not going! I will NOT leave you like this…..you go Kankurou, I'll stay here", said Temari as she continued to hold Naruto, her eyes showing the steeled resolve that she had.

"But Temari-"

"LEAVE KANKUROU!", she yelled before glaring at him, her cold eyes showing that she wasn't going to change her decision. The puppet user though just nodded at her hesitantly.

"Alright…..just stay safe", he said with a sigh before taking off.

"T-Temari…..please, d-don't risk y-your life for me", said Naruto weakly as he again coughed, his forehead burning due to the immense fever, his skin sweaty while his hands were trembling…..it was as if Naruto's life force was sucked away from him in a matter of couple of minutes.

"Shutup Naruto! Look at you….", yelled Temari as she held him tighter to her, few tears streaming down her cheeks as she clenched her eyes shut.

"You're dying! What's happening to you! You were perfectly fine a few minutes ago! You can't die here….you hear me! You have so many promises to keep….you have dreams to be accomplished! WHAT'S HAPPENING TO YOU?", she yelled while hugging him to her tightly, her salty tears falling on his face before she started whispering.

"Please don't die…..please Naruto-kun. You can't leave me….we need you…. Hinata-chan, Kin-chan…..I need you", she said while holding his head to her chest tightly, her tears falling off her chin.

'_She's crying….for me. She needs me…..everyone needs me. I can't die…..I just can't, no matter what…..I just can't. There's so much to do'_, the blonde thought as his oceanic blue eyes, though unnoticeable to anyone started to glow….if VERY faintly.

"Ah…..it's happening! You're close Uzumaki…..very close…..just remember to keep your loved ones close, or you'll die today", the cloaked female muttered to herself as she keenly observed Naruto.

"Damn you bastard! I've gotta help him!", yelled Kurenai in frustration as the fire queens, Kakashi and Gai continued to fight this endless onslaught by the Iwa and Suna nins with no traces of Oto anymore. The moment Kakashi had noticed Naruto's diminishing chakra levels, he knew that something was wrong with the blonde…..his health was deteriorating extremely fast. And though this was unexplainable in terms of medical science…..it was happening right in front of their eyes.

"Are the defense troops at the gates sucking these guy's dicks! How in the hell so many of these are coming here?", said Anko in frustration as Yugao had taken out her katana and was slicing through the jounins at mind boggling speeds while Kakashi and Gai too were starting to go all out.

Meanwhile Bee and Yugito too were starting to go all out…..although they still weren't going into youki mode. Temari was busy thinking as to what she could do to help the blonde in her lap.

'_What do I do? He's in no condition to fight anymore…..ofcourse! I'll just take him to the hospital…..'_, she thought, her panicking mind not being able to consider what would normally be something very obvious. Throwing her hitai-ate away to avoid any attacks due to her Suna forehead protector, she was just about to lift a panting, burning with fever Naruto when a red head man suddenly landed a few meters away from her making her eyes widen.

"Capture…Uzumaki Naruto…kill everyone else", muttered Roshi to himself as if he was a programmed puppet, his eyes blank as the Iwa jinchuriki slowly started walking towards the pair.

'_This…..should be interesting'_, the cloaked white haired female thought with a serious expression as she continued to observe Naruto from the roofs….miraculously no one being able to spot her presence until now.

**Annnnnd CUT! Pretty awkward place to end a chapter….but oh well, though I hope that you liked this chapter ^_^ If not…..then do let me know what you didn't like. Also, a week ago I updated my profile…..in which I've added some paras about my future story projects (have only revealed two of them right now). So I just wanted your ideas on them….your suggestions, anything. **

**In this chapter…..I'm sure things got even more confusing for you, right? Well…..I love to keep my readers in suspense, though I hope that doesn't frustrates you. So as usual, I request you guys to be patient as everything will be explained in the future chapters. So lastly…..I hope you most of you guys review this chapter ^_^ **

**See you next chapter my friends and take care. Adieus fellas! **

**N6023**


	27. Pushed to the Limits!

**So hey you guys! Glad to see you so soon ^_^ So here's an ultra fast update as promised with an ultra-long chapter (9K+)….so this time, I will be expecting reviews from most of you guys cause….yeah, this chapter should be good, I racked my brains and strained my ass for it….aaaaand it's a long chap, in a long time…so yeah, please! With nothing else to bore you…..on with the show-**

**Chapter-27-Pushed to the Limits! **

'_What do I do? He's in no condition to fight anymore…..ofcourse! I'll just take him to the hospital….._', she thought, her panicking mind not being able to consider what would normally be something very obvious. Throwing her hitai-ate away to avoid any attacks due to her Suna forehead protector, she was just about to lift a panting, burning with fever Naruto when a red head man suddenly landed a few meters away from her making her eyes widen.

"Capture…Uzumaki Naruto…kill everyone else", muttered Roshi to himself as if he was a programmed puppet, his eyes blank as the Iwa jinchuriki slowly started walking towards the pair.

'This…..should be interesting', the cloaked white haired female thought with a serious expression as she continued to observe Naruto from the roofs….miraculously no one being able to spot her presence until now.

"No….stay away!", yelled Temari as she hugged Naruto closer to her, tears in her eyes while Roshi just continued to slowly walk forwards with a blank expression on his face.

"T-Temari….go…..lea-leave", muttered Naruto while panting, his vision blurry while he could no longer hear Ayumi's voice, it was like the link between them had been severed somehow.

"N-Naruto-kun…you're eyes! Th-They…..they're bleeding now", she said while wiping the blood stream from both of his cheeks with her trembling hands, whereas Naruto had his eyes clenched shut as the blonde continued to pant.

'_W-What's going on? Somebody…..please…..Kaa-san'_, the blonde thought in desperation as he clenched Temari's hand tighter to his while trying to use his remaining chakra….but he knew that it was getting useless considering his chakra control was slipping too.

"Capture…..Uzumaki Naruto", Temari's eyes widened when her form was shadowed. Lifting her head, she saw the stone face of Roshi whose eyes looked blank as he just continued to stare at Naruto who had his blood laced eyes clenched shut.

"Please…..what do you want? Just leave him alone….", said Temari as she continued to hold Naruto's head to her chest while the only response she got was same as before.

"Capture…Uzumaki Naruto"

'_I have to protect Naruto-kun…..I just can't let him be captured…especially by Iwa'_, she thought while sneakily grabbing her fan which was laying besides her whereas Roshi continued to stare at Naruto.

"Take this!", Temari yelled before swinging her fan swiftly creating a strong gust of wind making the Iwa jinchuriki fly back who gracefully flipped in mid air before landing on the sand with ease. Releasing Naruto's head from her arm, she put the panting blonde jinchuriki down on the sand gently before standing up.

"I will NOT let you take away Naruto-kun! Never!", she declared with fire in her eyes which were radiating determination and the will to protect someone close to her as she widened her legs while rearing her fully opened fan back, her chakra levels rising while Roshi just stood there as he was now looking at her with those blank orbs.

"**Kamaitachi ****no Jutsu**(Cutting Whirlwind Technique)", she yelled before a powerful slicing wind wave flew towards the gobi jinchuriki who went through a couple of handseals with his hands only visible as blurs to Temari. Finishing them at the tiger hand seal, he muttered.

"**Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique)", before releasing a dragon shaped fire attack from his mouth which was, although small in size but extremely fast as it quickly covered the distance before colliding with the wind attack.

'_Shit! He can use fire element'_, thought Temari in midway as she jumped out of the way with Naruto in her arms, avoiding the now much powerful fire dragon which crashed into the sand creating a small crater which made the area black-grey due to the attack.

'_So Temari's actually helping us in this…I guess she was forced to take part in this attack. Though I'm glad that she's keeping safe Naruto__-kun__ for now. I have to finish here quickly…..who knows how strong that guy is'_, thought Hana as they continued to fight the enemies.

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium: Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

Here we find a smirking Orochimaru standing besides Hashirama, Tobirama and two other mysterious figures which Mei and A had trouble identifying, although Kushina and Hiruzen were a whole different story.

"Who are these two?", asked A as he stared at the first one who was a beautiful woman…..well both of them were beautiful women. The first was a redhead who wore an elaborate high collared light blue kimono with her hair arranged in buns with violet hair pins in them and three clips in the front along with what appeared to be sealing tags in her hair decals. The most interesting thing was that she had a diamond mark on her forehead, similar to that of a certain slug sanin and red lipstick on her lips while her skin was milk creamy just like Kushina.

The second one had black onyx eyes with her hair being black, her skin smooth porcelain which almost looked to be glowing with no blemishes whatsoever. She was wearing civilian clothes with two black bangs framing her heart shaped beautiful face.

"W-Where am I? What's happening?", exclaimed the black haired woman wide eyes as she looked around frantically before her eyes landed on Kushina and Hiruzen.

"K-Kushina-chan…..Hokage-sama?", she questioned with confusion in her eyes before hearing another feminine voice besides her.

"Kushina-chan?", the redhead muttered in shock while Kushina just looked at them with tears in her eyes whereas Hiruzen too was just rooted to his spot.

"U-Uzumaki Mito"

"M-Mikoto-chan", both Hiruzen and Kushina stuttered with shocked expressions on their faces as they now faced who had been dead for years now.

"T-They look exactly the same…as the last time I saw them. Mito-sama….", muttered Kushina as she saw the young form of the elder Uzumaki with wide eyes…many memories flashing through her mind like a playback, only in an instant this time.

"Kushina-chan? What's going on? Where's Itachi-kun and Sasuke-kun? Where's Fugaku? What's happening here?", Mikoto said frantically with a confused expression when Mito spoke in a calm voice.

"It seems…..that someone summoned us…or revived us from the dead", just as Mikoto was about to say something both of their eyes widened before they became blank after a few seconds.

"Kukukuku…I think that's enough reunion for now", said the snake with a smirk after he had pushed the special seal talismans in their heads via kunai.

'_Those seals…I remember those…..they were designed by the Nidaime when he was creating this technique'_, thought Kushina as she had seen the seals with her sharingan.

'_He must have given them some command…I guess they are under his control'_, the Uzumaki redhead thought as she prepared herself for the fight of her life…for she knew how much strong the supposed dead Uchiha and the Uzumaki were.

"Kushina…you would be just wasting your chakra. They would just regenerate like before…..and we would be just wasting our chakra. This is the technique that Tobirama-sensei created…..and I know atleast the basic mechanics of it. Orochimaru has dragged their souls from the pure world here…..this impure world….it's all about souls. Fuinjutsu…..that's the only counter against this technique….right now, Orochimaru has complete control over them", explained Hiruzen with Enma in the form of staff in his hands while Mei and A nodded besides him with grim expressions on their faces, taking all of the information in.

"I know jiji…..I too studied about this technique…..but I need some time to think of the counter seals which can overwrite Orochimaru's commands. Those seal tags which he placed in their heads…..it's the core of this technique….if I can somehow, replace those commands…..we can win here. And possibly….actually revive these guys", she whispered back making Hiruzen snap his head towards her, his eyes as wide as possible.

"What? A-Are you serious?", the aged hokage whispered back making Kushina nod ever so slightly with a serious expression on her face.

"Before Naru-kun's birth, when I was studying Nidaime-sama's notes for this technique…..I had created a complex seal which would help me stick the souls of those revived through Edo Tensei to the sacrificed bodies permanently…..in other words, they become alive…..it's all about the magic of fuinjutsu. Basically…..the seal I created cuts their soul ties to the pure world and makes them reside in their bodies just like when they were alive", she again whispered while Orochimaru had a confident smirk on his face, enjoying the tense look on his sensei's face.

"Then why didn't you revive them earlier?", whispered the professor with an incredulous expression on his face.

"You're not getting this completely…..for my revival seal to work, you first have to revive the dead person by the Edo Tensei. I just didn't have the heart to sacrifice one person to bring back another one…..", she muttered making the sandaime smirk at her.

'_I never knew you could come this far Kushina…you really are something. You sure are the mother of the child of prophecy'_, he thought before releasing his breath he involuntary was holding during her explanation.

"But don't get your hopes up completely jiji…the seal I created is correct only in theory…I've never tried it actually. Besides…..it takes 4-5 days to create such complex seal….right now, I just have to think of a seal which can nullify the sealing tag that bastard put in their heads. I need some time here jiji", she whispered while A and Mei could only wonder what these were bickering about at a time like this.

"Hmm…..it's useless sensei. You can't defeat this technique….ask the Raikage and Mizukage for reference if you want", spoke Orochimaru with a chuckle making A grit his teeth.

"Psst….A, Mei….listen to me. Don't try to defeat them for now…..just concentrate on dodging and preserving your chakra…..I just need some time here", said Kushina to the Raikage and Mizukage in a low tone making them look at her in surprise.

"How do you plan on defeating them? They are practically immortal…..nothing damages them even remotely", said A as he promptly cancelled his lightning armour while Mei too had a confused expression making Kushina grin at the duo.

"Just trust me here…or do you have anything else in your mind?", she asked with a smirk making A sigh while Mei just smiled back at her.

"I trust you Kushina-san", said the Mizukage.

"Fine then…..guess I'll have to follow your lead this time", he said with a grunt while Kushina turned her head back, already racking her mind for a seal which could stop this kinjutsu.

'_I'll have to create a new one here…..start from the fresh. I know the design of the seal Orochimaru used perfectly…..but still it would take time even for me to devise a counter seal amidst a battle like this'_, she thought, all the while raising her chakra levels.

"Raikage-dono and Mizukage-dono should be used to each other's fighting styles by now and they can fight Hashirama-sama and Tobirama-sensei effectively. Kushina, you take on Orochimaru since you can easily match him while I will fight Mito-sama and Mikoto", said the professor making A and Mei nod.

"No"

"What?", asked Sarutobi in confusion as he stared at her.

"You take on Orochimaru…..I think you're underestimating Mito-sama and Mikoto-chan here. Don't forget that we're talking about an ex-jinchuriki and the Kami no Kawarimi…..it would be best if I handle them. I know their fighting styles…..especially Mikoto-chan's", Kushina said with her eyes getting icy cold, her chakra level still rising making Mei look at her in surprise.

'_I guess I forgot just how much chakra a fully developed Uzumaki can possess'_, she thought with amazement on her face while Orochimaru too had an impressed expression on his face.

"Let's begin the show…though I'll give you guys a chance to get ready considering you're dying today anyway", the sanin declared with a cocky smile as he himself released kage-level killer intent which had the sound four sweating bullets as they could feel it from outside the barrier too.

"Oh you're gonna regret this you freak", muttered Kushina to herself with a smirk before she went through three handseals, tendrils of her long red began to rise while defying gravity due to the amount of chakra she was releasing.

"There's no point in holding back now I guess…I'm going all out jiji, A, Mei. So I advice you guys to keep distance from me, cause to keep up with these two simultaneously…..I'll have to get wild here….KAI!", exclaimed Kushina before a crater started to form beneath her feet, her sky blue chakra suddenly flaring around her creating strong whirling gusts of wind while the three kages had jumped farther away from her.

'_Such power…..Kushina, you never cease to amaze me no matter how many times I see you go all out'_, thought Hiruzen as they were shielding their eyes due to the dust.

"Even I have to admit…she's in a whole other league just like Itachi", muttered Orochimaru to himself as he watched the impressive display of chakra that was flaring around Kushina , her violet eyes glowing sky blue in colour due to so much chakra with the tips of her hair defying gravity. The wild chakra though slowly started to dissipate, condensing itself which looked to be slowly being absorbed by Kushina with the wind dying down. Kushina released a calming breath as she stood up straight with a smirk on her face, her eyes still glowing sky blue before it died down to show the red schlera with two black tomoes indicating the Sharingan…..the earlier visible chakra now no longer visible to anyone.

"Alright…..let's get the show started!", she said with fire in her eyes, while on the other hand…..unbeknownst to anyone, she had sneakily created a shadow clone and had it transform into a pebble which was doing the thinking part as to how the seal should be created.

'_Oh how I love the memory transfer ability of shadow clones so much'_, she mused with a smirk….things were looking their way now after all. Though unknown to her, her son/lover was a whole different ball game right now.

**Konoha: Main Event Stadium**

He could no longer hear the voice of Ayumi, his vision was blurry with only faint sounds of panting of Temari and occasional blasts in the stadium reaching his ears. He tried to move, to lift his arm…..but it looked like his whole body was numb, no longer under his control. The only thing he could feel were the sand grains beneath him….shuffling every second due to the endless fighting and explosions which were rocking the stadium.

''_I've got to do something…..I cannot let things happen like this. I'm just being a burden on Temari and everyone else…..that red haired guy, I can sense that he's a jinchuriki too. Temari…..she wouldn't stand a chance against him, he would kill her!'_, thought Naruto as his heart clenched at the thought of his loved ones dying….all the more while trying to protect him.

"Damn you….", growled Temari while panting heavily. She was sporting several cuts on her sky blue attire while there were several bruises on her skin.

'_I'm at a complete disadvantage against this guy. He's using both fire and earth release techniques against me. My wind attacks don't stand any chance against his fire ones while there is plenty of sand here for his earth element which he's hardening by using his chakra. What do I do? All of my attacks are long range which are wind based….my taijutsu , well it has improved over the month because of Hinata-chan, but this guy's atleast an elite jounin I can tell. So in nutshell, I've no hopes of defeating him…..but I have to protect Naruto-kun! Guess the only thing I can do here is stall this guy and hope that help arrives soon'_, the Suna kunoichi thought with a grim expression while we find a completely unharmed Roshi standing a few meters away from her whereas Naruto too was laying two or three meters behind her. Gritting her teeth, Temari closed her opened fan to make it look like a metallic staff, getting ready into her taijutsu stance when she saw Roshi dashing towards her at much greater speeds than before.

'_I can barely see him'_, she thought in panic before narrowly dodging a punch aimed at her face sideways. Her eyes widened though when she saw his knee coming towards her gut before she blocked it with her closed fan just in time, pushing her backwards because of the power in the blow.

Roshi though didn't give her any time to recuperate as he again dashed, his speed again greater than before and was barely visible even as a blur to Temari.

"AAAH!", she exclaimed in pain when Roshi punched her in the gut out of nowhere, her eyes widening in immense pain as she spat blood with a mixture of saliva. Completely thrown off by punch, she wasn't able to dodge the kick which impacted the side of her head at breakneck speeds making her fly back before she skidded onto the sandy surface and came to a halt just besides the laying form of Naruto, whose eyes widened when he saw her blurry injured form.

"T-Temari….please….go away…please, you'll die", the blonde stuttered while panting as he tried to sit up but failed due to his elbows giving out, his eyes now half open which were filled with pain and desperation as he saw the bruised form of Temari who was panting in exhaustion, blood seeping down her chin from her mouth.

"N-No…..I can't l-leave you….if I d-die protecting y-you, then s-so be it", she said while shakily standing up, her knees trembling as she held her head in pain as she stumbled on her feet. Meanwhile Naruto's mind was going haywire as he watched her blurry figure trying to protect him…..putting her life on the line just to protect his useless life right now.

'_Why is this happening to me? I trained so hard…..why? Didn't I had enough during my childhood? Why do I have to go through such pain…..I want to protect her, I want to protect them. I have the strength….then why can't I use it? Is this the work of that woman who I just met? But no matter…..I will NOT give up, I just can't give up here'_, he thought as his heart started to race faster, his breathing rate as fast as it could go while he could feel his heart practically thumping in his chest…..he could feel something, something foreign….it was faint, but it was getting stronger with each moment of desperation. Right now, his body was only running on adrenaline as he slowly moved his hand…he could feel it, he could feel some strength coming from that foreign feeling as he shakily tried to sit up.

"N-Naruto-kun?", Temari exclaimed in surprise as she watched him struggling, his elbows trembling but nonetheless…..he was slowly lifting himself up to sit, his eyes clenched shut as he gritted his teeth.

'_How is he….even able to move? Moments ago, he wasn't even able to lift a finger'_, she thought with widened eyes as she herself was struggling to stand.

'_C'mon…..just a little more. Move….MOVE! I HAVE TO PROTECT HER!'_, the blonde motivated himself inwardly as he now pushed himself to stand…..his heart thumping in his chest though he still noticed that he had almost negligible chakra in his coils which had brought him to another question.

How the hell was he even alive with so little chakra?

He didn't know but he could feel some of his strength returning back as pushed as much strength into his knees as he could.

"Naruto! What are you doing? You're clearly in no condition to even stand….let alone fight", yelled Temari with an angry expression on her face as she supported his now standing form, his knees trembling…..struggling to support his weight.

"I wouldn't….l-let you die. You c-can't…..not w-when I'm alive", the blonde said making her fume in frustration as to why was he being so stubborn.

"Just shut up! Look at you…..you're a mess with barely any strength left! Would you stop being stubborn for once?", she exclaimed with her eyes reflecting pain, anger as well as concern for him. Naruto though, just ignored as he slowly opened his eyes before he turned his head when he heard her gasp.

"N-Naruto…..your e-eyes…..t-they're glowing", she muttered quietly in shock while Naruto just couldn't hear her clearly enough as his senses were still mostly shaggy.

"Well well…..what do we have here?", Temari snapped her head for her eyes to widen when she saw who was standing besides Roshi with a smirk on his face.

"YOU!….What do you want now!", she growled with narrowed eyes while Naruto too narrowed his eyes upon recognizing the blurry figure and his voice.

"S-Sasuke….", came the rasped voice of the panting blonde as his arm was slung over Temari's shoulder who herself wasn't doing much better.

"Naruto…what happened to you?", said the Uchiha with his usual smirk not present on his face as he analysed the blonde's condition, his black onyx eyes widening when he saw his old teammate's eyes glowing white in color.

'_What's happening here? The dobe has almost no chakra left…..but then, he should have died due to such low chakra levels. There's something wrong here…..Naruto doesn't seem to have any physical injuries on his body yet he's standing like he fought three kages at once'_, the Uchiha thought with a grim expression with his sharingan active, who was wearing the sound robes just like the sound four with a katana on his back before he eyed the Iwa standing beside him warily.

'_And this guy…probably here to capture Naruto. Danzo does want the dobe after all…..but I too have to kill the dobe to obtain the Mangekyou. I'll have to do this carefully and swiftly'_, thought the Uchiha before a smirk formed on his face while Temari and Naruto were gritting their teeth.

'_This isn't looking good….'_, thought Naruto obviously when his eyes widened upon hearing a foreign voice…..but that familiar voice inside his head.

"_So Uzumaki…enjoying yourself__?__"_, he heard her feminine voice before she giggled.

"_So you're the one causing this! What did you do to me? And how are you talking to me telepathically?"_, growled Naruto inside his head when he heard her amused voice.

"_I did nothing to you Naruto….whatever is happening to you was bound to happen and at the same time necessary. The one who holds the Rinnegan…..descendant of the Rikudou senin, his path is never easy. It is full of pain, hatred, struggle and suffering. It's your choice though what path you take….either you become what we call a good ninja or a bad ninja. And as for me talking in your mind….well let's just say it's one of many abilities of my race"_

"_Race? Are you telling me that you're not a human?"_

"_That's enough for now Uzumaki…..you're in a critical condition now. From here, either you die painfully or you reach the next level…..it all depends on you"_

"_But how? I'm trying my hardest…..but I don't have any strength left….nothing! I'm barely even able to stand myself….earlier I couldn't even do that much"_, he spoke in frustration inwardly before he immediately heard her speak.

"_Then where did you get the strength to stand up if earlier you couldn't even lift a finger…just remember what I said Naruto. And if it means anything to you, which I'm sure it doesn't right now…..I'm sorry for all the suffering you are going through right now. But you are the child of prophecy….and that path is never easy. See you later!"_, he heard her serious voice turn jovial at the end when everything went quiet inside his head as he zoomed his concentration out to find Sasuke still standing with a serious expression on his face besides Roshi.

'_What did she meant earlier? I don't even know where I got the strength to stand earlier…..'_, thought Naruto, his brain working a mile per second as he concentrated on every word she had said to him.

'_Remember what I told you Uzumaki'_, his eyes widened when he remembered.

'_Naruto…..keep your loved ones close'_

'_Ofcourse! She was referring to that….but I still don't get it. I have my loved ones…..and they are very close to me, I'll do anything to protect them….DAMMIT! I can't even contact Ayumi-chan__for help now!'_, the blonde screamed in his head in frustration as he continued to think, the current situation not helping his mind calm at all.

"Dobe…..I was really looking forward to our battle. But I guess…..the road ends here for you", said Sasuke as he closed his eyes while he slowly unsheathed his katana having a metallic blue blade.

"H-Heh….and y-you would h-have most p-probably lost. Y-You don't h-have any idea w-what I'm …c-capable of", said Naruto with a painful grin as he continued to pant, his eyes half lidded while Temari held onto him tighter.

'_Naruto-kun…..I wouldn't leave you'_, she mentally chanted while praying that by some miracle, the blonde besides her becomes healthy and starts kicking ass like she knew he would have done. She just wanted for him to be alright….that's all, he had helped her so much in the past month and had always cheered her whenever she was feeling down and Naruto had created a special place for himself in her heart.

"Sadly we can't find out now can we?", stated Sasuke while Naruto himself was wondering where did the cocky and always overconfident Uchiha he knew go….the one in front of him was a calm and a calculative shinobi who definitely was waiting for the moment to make his move.

"Capture Uzumaki Naruto", Sasuke turned his pupils sideways to see the guy muttering to himself as if he was on autopilot.

'_I still can't believe nor do know how that old hawk is controlling a jinchuriki while sitting far away from here'_, thought Sasuke with his katana in front of him as he started to charge lightning natured chakra through his katana making it glow while lightning streaks started to dance around the metal. Meanwhlle Temari's eyes widened when she saw Sasuke use lightning element.

'_I just may have my chance here….I can use that lightning to my advantage in collaboration with my wind attacks'_, thought the Suna kunoichi as she sneakily clicked her fan open a bit while Sasuke immediately picked her moments with the Sharingan.

'_So….she's that wind element user from the preliminaries'_, he thought before turning his head to the jinchuriki standing besides him.

"If you want Naruto….then let me capture him while you take care of the girl cause you can easily counter her attacks", he said with the only response him getting was the blank face of Roshi making him smirk inwardly.

'_Perfect!'_, Sasuke exclaimed in his mind before he dashed towards Naruto in a blur, completely vanishing from Temari's sight before appearing in front of Naruto much to her surprise. Before she could even lift a finger, the blonde was punched in the gut making him fly back in pain before he skidded to a halt.

"NARUTO!", yelled Anko with an in between her fighting when she saw him being hit by Sasuke making the blonde fly back who was now holding his stomach in pain….his condition already worse for the wear.

"No….we have to do something!", yelled Hana in panic while Kurenai and Yugao were trying their level best to go down, but it seemed that the shinobi in front of them were keeping them busy. Even if they were elite jounins and prodigies, fighting against jounins while being outnumbered was something that took toll even on some of the kages.

"Anko! Gai is releasing his celestial gates…he will take care of the ones you're fighting, so as soon as you find an opening, you know what to do", the copy nin yelled making Anko nod as she was now in a clash with a Suna jounin, both of their kunai now rubbing against each other making sparks fly out due to the force.

"You think we'll let you?", he said fiercely with a serious expression making Anko narrow her eyes before she completely stopped the force from her side making the guy fell forwards. Bending back with amazing speed and an agility that only a kunoichi possessed, she planted her feet on his chest making his eyes widen while supporting her body weight on two arms before flipping backside with a breakneck speed making the jounin fly back to crash into the wall due to an extremely well executed monkey flip.

"And I dare you to try you bastard!", she growled before dodging yet another one of those random attacks which were coming one after another, making her grit her teeth in frustration before she looked in the direction of Gai to see him power up.

'_Hurry up Gai! We don't have much time'_, thought Kurenai who along with Yugao were taking on most of the enemies with Kakashi giving the green clad the required backup for the time he needed to release open the gates…..after all, even one second of lost concentration could result in instant death here.

"Ahhhh…..", Naruto writhed in pain as he held his stomach due to the hilt of Sasuke's katana being thrusted there painfully while Temari just had a shocked expression on her face as she continued to watch where Naruto was standing just a second ago, now replaced by Sasuke who was just ignoring her and was staring forward.

'_Damn you Sasuke….'_, thought the whiskered jinchuriki as he tried to endure the pain which he should have barely felt…but it seemed like his pain receptors were amplified to further his misery.

'_Are these the effects of having the Rinnegan? Is this the reason why I was jumping with joy when I came to know I had a bloodline? What's the fucking use when I'm just lying here like a loser while Temari is putting her life on the line for me? Why? Just as life was beginning to finally look up for me…..this had to happen. Why can't I have a chance at some happy memories too? No….I do have memories, happy ones. I spent so much time with Kaa-san…..I still remember our first time and all the following ones'_, the blonde thought as he lay motionless in the small crater created due to his fall.

'_We pranked together….so many pranks…..putting Asuma's beard on fire with his own lighter while he was sleeping…..sunscreen lotion in Anko-chan's dango….drenching Yugao-chan's katana in black tar….hiding Kurenai-chan's bras and panties for a week…..attaching some sealed firecrackers to jiji's pipe. We did crazy things…..but it was fun….the brightest and happiest month of my life. Kin-chan, Hinata-chan, Ino-chan, Sakura-chan…..we guys trained together, laughed together and had so much fun. The make out session Anko-chan and I had this morning in an alley just before coming here…I cherish all these memories. But…..but, I just can't….b-bear the thought of not seeing you guys ever again, I still have my dreams…..my ambition…..my village…I don't want to die….I-I want to p-protect you….all of you'_, he mentally said to himself while staring upwards into the blue sky, unknowingly a few tears streaming down his bruised face as he thought about the best month of his life, wetting the dry sand grains.

DHAK

DHAK DHAK

DHAK DHAK DHAK…

Naruto's tear filled eyes began to widen when he felt his heart beating rate abruptly go up again, his chest thumping up and down as he stared wide eyed at the endless blue horizon which was slowly becoming clearer by the second.

'_W-What's happening to me now?'_, he thought in panic already expecting something even worse to happen to him this time.

"Hmm…it's happening, it's finally happening", the cloaked female said to herself as she gazed at Naruto from above, her eyes glowing blue in color.

"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!", yelled Temari after getting over her initial shock as she went for a punch at the Uchiha's head besides her when suddenly…..she felt the insides of her stomach twist upon taking a bone crushing punch to her gut before she went back at whizzing speeds in midair….coughing out blood as she crashed again near where the blonde was laying. Naruto, who was confused as to what was happening to him turned his head with a snap when he heard a whimper.

"Ahhttshsh…..", she whimpered through gritted teeth, transparent liquid coming out of her eyes as she tried to bear the unevitable pain she was feeling in her stomach which was hit twice in the same area.

"T-Temari!", the blonde immediately exclaimed as he himself continued to hold his stomach, his heart beat still rising as he noticed his breathing rate again quicken like before.

"N-Naruto…..I-I'm s-sorry", her rasped voice came from her whimpering form which was curled up due to the unbearable pain. Naruto's pupil though started to zoom out as he stared at her injured form…..she who was now dying just so he could stay safe. His eyes started to glow even more now as his hair too started to waver in midair, the blonde flocks glowing a bit while unknown to Naruto who was only concentrated on the girl in front of her, his senses started to open up. His vision becoming less and less blurry by the second, his hearing…his strength, he could feel his strength returning.

"No….I'm sorry T-Temari….I w-wouldn't let you d-die…..never! I'm g-gonna protect you", the blonde said to her as finally…..miraculously, he moved his hand to cup her cheeks when he suddenly felt that foreign feeling magnifying in the core of his chakra network.

"Yes….just a little more….he just needs one more push", the white haired female said to herself, her voice lacing with excitement.

Meanwhile, Sasuke's eyes widened when he saw that slowly…..out of nowhere, white chakra started to slowly flow in his what earlier seemed to be empty coils while Roshi, who was standing beside him after punching Temari just remained motionless.

'_What the fuck! Just what the hell is going on here? Where is that chakra coming from….he was empty some moments ago! And why is his hair and eyes glowing now? I should just kill him and finish this nuisance…who knows what will he pull of later?'_, Sasuke thought as he sneakily eyed Roshi standing besides him, his katana still charged with electricity.

'_Now!'_, the Uchiha mentally exclaimed before he jumped high into the air at impressive speeds, chakra beneath his feet. His Sharingan spinning wildly, Sasuke took out a seal parchment, in the middle of which was the black ink kanji for lightning. Attaching it to the metal of his katana, he tapped the seal to activate it before throwing the lightning charged katana at mind boggling speeds towards Naruto whose senses were still improving.

'_I gotta stand up!'_, thought the blonde who was now on his knees, unknown to the attack that was launched onto him while he could feel his chakra levels again rising.

"NARUTO!", his eyes widened upon hearing a familiar scream when…..

WHOOSH!

SQUELCH!

"That bitch!", exclaimed Sasuke in anger as he landed onto the sand with an enraged expression.

"W-What?", exclaimed Naruto in shock while his knees gave out making him fall on his butt as he looked towards the one standing in front of him. The metallic blue metal which was streaming with electricity now coated red, protruding out of the stomach of the female in front of him.

"Y-You okay…..whiskers-chan?", she asked while gritting her teeth in pain as she could feel her body getting numb due to the current.

"A-Anko-chan!", Naruto said with wide eyes as his hands became to tremble, his lower lip quivering while the pupil in his glowing eyes started to vibrate…..all the alarm systems in his body going off the charts .

"AAhhhh!", she screamed in pain as she removed the sword from her stomach before throwing it sideways.

"ANKO-CHAN!", Naruto yelled in panic….fear filling every fibre of his being as he immediately lunged at her falling body….his own body regaining some mobility back which he didn't notice at the time.

"N-Naru-kun…..thank K-Kami…..you're okay", the snake mistress spoke weakly while breathing harshly, blood seeping out of her mouth as she coughed occasionally.

"Anko-chan…..why? WHAT W-WERE YOU THINKING?", yelled Naruto in panic….his hands trembling as he tried to stop the blood flow from his bare hands but it only increased her pain.

'_What do I do? What do I…do? I can't…..she's dying! I have to do something!'_, the jinchuriki thought in panic….tears streaming down his face as he held his head.

"Why why why why WHY?", he yelled to himself as unending stream of tears dropped from his chin when he felt a cold hand on his cheek. Opening his eyes, he saw her smile…..that beautiful smile of her which made his heart flutter every time he saw it.

"Don't c-cry N-Naru-kun…..I-I'm ha-happy….I-I'm d-dying…_'cough'_ while p-protecting you", she said as blood continued to seep down her chin just like Naruto's tears.

"A-Anko-chan, please d-don't die….I w-wouldn't b-be able to l-live wi-without you", he said in a quivering voice, no longer caring about his own life…..his heart breaking as he looked at her slowly becoming pale face.

"B-Baka…you h-have o-others…..K-Kushina-nee, Kurenai-chan…Yug-"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!", he yelled abruptly…..slowly losing himself as now white chakra started to seep out his skin slowly, unknown to him. Hugging her closer to him, her head to his chest….he spoke softly,

"It doesn't matter….everyone of you is important….each one of you is important, I can't b-bear the thought of l-losing anyone of y-you. I just c-can't lose you Anko-chan", he said as the white chakra continued to seep out from his body unknown to both of them, his eyes clenched shut as he hugged her tightly to his body, the river of his tears not stopping it's flow while Anko too took comfort in the warmth he was providing.

"Sayonara N-Naru-kun…and r-remember, d-dango will al-always be b-better than r-ramen", she muttered with a barely audible chuckle.

'_Guess….this was as far as it was meant to be, and I'm glad I got to be with Naru-kun'_, she thought with a peaceful smile, her life slowly fading away while now tendrils of the white glowing chakra were rotating around Naruto slowly.

"W-What's going on?", spoke a shell-shocked Sasuke as he stared wide eyed at Naruto with his sharingan.

"Anko-chan…..damn it!", muttered Kurenai as she continued to fight, tears streaming down her face but still continuing to fight like a true kunoichi….not letting her emotions slow her down, the same was happening with other fire queens, Kakashi and Gai.

Meanwhile, Naruto was having a mental breakdown as he saw the life slowly leave her eyes, her skin becoming pale while he could feel his chakra returning to him full force…but he just ignored the magnified feeling of sereneness and peacefulness he was feeling this time…..much greater than before.

'_I can't let her die…..she means so much to me…..I have to do something…..ANYTHING!'_, the blonde thought in desperation as the world around him slowed down, the only thing he could hear was his heart beat, his adrenaline pumping as he could feel the chakra which was slowly filling up his coils reach his optical coils and finally to his eyes.

BOOM!

A shockwave impacted the cores of the arena as a strong…..extremely strong wave of white glowing chakra swept over the stadium like a dome making everyone feel like an earthquake had struck. Glasses broke violently everywhere in the stadium while Sasuke was shielding his eyes from the dust which was induced due to the crater that was formed where Naruto was sitting.

"W-What's happening? Kakashi?", asked Hana in surprise as everyone momentarily stopped fighting….stunned expressions on their faces as they stared at the large amount of tendrils of white glowing chakra which was revolving around a specific spot (covered by dust).

"I…I don't know. Something happened to Naruto…..his chakra levels are sky rocketing, they are off the charts….all I can see in that dust sphere is white, nothing else", the copy nin said as he stared at vast amounts of chakra what was revolving around the dust cloud. It was like a display of fireworks while almost every shinobi could feel the chakra spike even a mile away.

'_It's Naruto's!'_, thought Jiraiya with widened eyes who right now was standing on Gamabunta at the east gate.

"T-This is…..Naruto-sama's chakra, it feels so strong yet….it's so calm and peaceful", muttered Kiyohime to herself as she stared in the direction of where the chakra was coming off, worry clearly reflecting in her bright gren orbs for the blonde whom she admired and…._'cough' 'cough'_ _'that would be personal'_.

Roshi though, through it all just kept standing like a machine whereas Sasuke had lost his footing due to the shockwave and was standing much behind the Iwa jinchuriki.

'_How does that dobe possess that much power…..he was just a crippled genin seconds ago'_, the Uchiha thought in frustration as he prepared himself seeing as the dust cloud was now slowly dissipating.

"Hm….it's done. Mission accomplished I guess….now let's see some ass-kicking shall we", the white haired lady said to herself with a smile.

Meanwhile, the tendrils of glowing white chakra too started to converge at one place inside the dust before they completely vanished but almost everyone could see the glowing form of a sitting figure through the dust.

And with nature's call, that is, with a gust of wind the dust completely cleared for them to see a heavenly white glow emanate from the blonde sitting with his back towards their wide eyes, making them shield their eyes because of the unearthly glow, especially the ones who were on the sand covered battle arena.

"Kakashi….is Naruto and Anko alright…and Temai too?", said Yugao with a worried expression.

"Oh Naruto's fine alright…much better than fine actually. But Anko and that girl…..I'm not sure, I can't distinguish their chakra networks. Naruto's chakra is still practically flowing in the air down there", he said as they waited with baited breath, as if it was a climax scene of a killer suspense movie with the Iwa, Suna and Konoha shinobi rejoicing together. All fighting in the arena had stopped as they waited for the glow to die down.

"Bee…..what do you think happened? Did he lost control or something?", said Yugito who was trying to see past the glow.

"I don't know but…..I love the nine-o, cause he fights like macho!", he exclaimed with enthusiasm.

BONK!

'_Is he a gay or something?'_, thought Karui with a sweatdrop…..cause this was the worst of his raps she had ever heard.

"Idiot", muttered Yugito as she rubbed her fist after hitting him, her eyes still twitching at the monstrosity he called 'Enka'.

"IS THIS GLOW EVER GOING TO DIE DOWN?", suddenly yelled one of the jounin in the stadium, his voice reverberating making everyone sweatdrop at him.

'_What a jerk!'_, thought Sasuke while shaking his head before the white started to go down….now no longer present as everyone's eyes took some time to adjust to the sudden change in light.

Sasuke though could see through his Sharingan and wasn't surprised much to see Naruto's coils overflowing with that same cursed white chakra! Though, much to the Uchiha's frustration…..the blonde's figure was still glowing a bit while his spiky hair looked like they were white due to the shine.

Kakashi though picked up the details making his eyes widen.

'_He's giving her his chakra….she's still alive! But…..how can his chakra heal her wounds at such tremendous rate, it wasn't possible before!'_, though Kakashi in shock as he watched Anko's coils now filled with white chakra, in the mix of which were the traces of her blue colored chakra. During the one month training, Kushina had discovered that Naruto's chakra was special in more than one way...they had found out that the white chakra was compatible with anyone's body, it was just like an O group blood which could be donated to anyone. And she found sense in it considering Rikudou Senin's chakra was very special…..and all the techniques, and most importantly chakra, was discovered by him. So it was like Naruto's chakra was universal….and could be given to anyone….well atleast to those 10-15 people they had given his chakra to when they were injured or something.

"Anko-chan….you will not die", said Naruto gently whose one glowing hand was on the wound on her stomach, his chakra healing her wound at unseen rates in medical science while Anko's skin color was slowly returning back to normal.

"N-Naru-kun….", he heard her whimper as she slowly fluttered her eyes open, before closing them suddenly due to his glowing form. Naruto smiled fondly when she fluttered her eyes cutely to adjust to the light while he held her tighter.

"Anko-chan….", he whispered as he traced his hand on her cheek making her blush a bit as she unconsciously leaned into his touch. Using a half ram seal quietly, Naruto created a shadow clone which stood in front of his back….ready for any sneak attacks either by Roshi or by Sasuke, a cold expression on his face.

Anko though, finally adjusting to the light had her eyes widened when she saw his glowing figure, his calm smile making her heart flutter as she saw his tear stained face, his hair glowing white now. Though she did a backflip upon seeing his eyes, the Rinnegan was activated alright but he had two black rings now….the dotted one now replaced by a completely black ring.

'_H-He ascended!'_, she thought with a stunned expression while Naruto just kept looking at her, the one who had jumped without a thought in front of the sword to save him, he then glanced fondly towards an unconscious Temari who just lay in front of him.

"There….all done", he said with a smile after withdrawing his hand from her stomach making Anko's eyes wide yet again.

"H-How did you….there was a h-hole", she stuttered when suddenly she found the blonde's lips on hers making her blush furiously…before she closed her eyes and kissed him back. However, she was taken aback by the passion with which he was hungrily tasting her lips, nibbling on her lower lip making her moan, pouring all of his love for her. Leaning back, he was satisfied to see a dazed expression on Anko's face, her cheeks a cute shade of red…..well his kisses did always left her like that, even simplest of his touches made her feel like she was on cloud nine.

"I'm so glad I didn't lose you Anko-chan…..I don't know what would I have done if I had lost you", he said while hugging her tightly to her…..making her blush furiously yet again.

"N-Naru-kun…..we're in the middle of a war", she stuttered making Naruto scratch the back of his glowing back head sheepishly before he gently released her.

"Stay here for a while", he said softly before he stood up….flexing his hands, a surprised expression slowly forming on his face.

'_This feeling…..it's incredible! I feel stronger…..much stronger than before, and my chakra…it's amazing!'_, thought the blonde with a smile as he took a step forward before bending down besides an injured Temari.

"Fuck this! He's treating us like we're not even here!", growled Sasuke before he dashed at blinding speeds towards the clone first who just stood there, dust trailing behind him.

"Wait", said Naruto quietly to his clone, not taking his eyes off of Temari, his left hand already healing her when he lifted his right hand towards an approaching Sasuke.

"Let me try", said Naruto in a low tone, his palm facing Sasuke making the Uchiha's eyes widen when he recognized what the blonde was doing.

'_He's pulling that same gravitational technique of his…..gotta dodge it….it comes as a wave of chakra everytime'_, thought Sasuke, having possibly devised a counter against the almighty technique. Naruto though didn't say anything, rather released a concentrated blast of gravitational force at Sasuke….his chakra visible now even by naked eye. But the main problem was the speed at which the attack headed towards the Uchiha….who didn't even have any time to blink before he was pushed back at what you could call double break-neck speeds, his own flying form a blur to anyone who could be trying to locate the Uchiha who flew back to collide into several trees in a small foliage which was at the other end of the sandy battle arena there.

'_Wow…..my techniques are much more effective now…they are stronger as well as faster than before. But I can't retain this form any longer…..have to heal Temari quickly'_, thought Naruto just before he noticed that he had completely healed her already, but she was still unconscious due to chakra exhaustion earlier.

'_I'm glad you're okay Temari-chan'_, thought the blonde as he fondly rubbed her cheek before taking a calm breath, the white glow dying down around him as he returned to normal with his blue eyes and blonde hair. Standing up, he slowly walked forward…..

"Just wait a minute Anko-chan….you rest for a while as you lost quite the amount of blood back then. But for now….. I'm gonna take care of these two", spoke Naruto while Anko picked up the barely repressed anger and rage behind his tone.

"Well….happy ass-kicking then whiskers-chan", the snake mistress said weakly with a smile making Naruto smirk back before he became completely serious as he began to walk forward….impressed to see the Uchiha land besides a blank faced Roshi, though he could see the black marks of the curse seal on his skin.

'_Oh….well done Uzumaki Naruto. So it finally happened eh? Let's see how far you have reached combined with the training you received under your Kaa-san'_, the mysterious cloaked female thought to herself with a smile.

"Even with three tomoes…..you couldn't see my attack", said Naruto with a smirk as he continued to walk forward while his shadow clone which he put quite a chakra in was standing in guard for Anko and Temari.

"Shutup loser!", growled Sasuke as dark purple chakra started to leak out of the enraged Uchiha, who had quite some bruises, blood flowing down his forehead while his robes were torn in several places. Naruto though immediately lost his smirk, involuntarily the images of an injured Anko and Temari flashing through his mind making him clench his fists tightly. Raising his own chakra levels, with his white chakra now flaring around his body as a small crater formed beneath his feet…..he growled with a cold tone that sent chills down the Uchiha's spine, his index finger pointing in their directions.

"You're going down teme…..both of you!"

**Sooooo…um? Really? Was it good? I think I would be getting mixed reactions out of you guys in this one because…..some of you will get confused, some of you will ****say ****what happened was unrealistic, some of you will complain about Naruto being a weakling (He's NOT and would NEVER be in ANY of my fics), some will say he's emo, some will flame me for bringing Sasuke back and not bashing him, some will…..well just flame me for pleasure ^_^**

**But I'll take it in with stride. I do really understand if many of you guys would be unhappy with the way I'm doing things right now. For ex- the way I'm going to bring Mikoto back (many rotten tomatoes coming my way!)….I know it' s cliché, not original and a cheap way to bring her back….but, deal with it. She was killed and I had to do something…..not like she miraculously survived that night or anything. You guys can again complain about….why all the drama, why couldn't Naruto just get the second level like the Sharingan, quiet and fast and just start kicking ****some stinkin' ****ass****es****. What was all the drama about? Did I write 9K+ just to do…..something simple, expected like this? Well to answer that, the Rinnegan is a really powerful doujutsu…much stronger than Sharingan, and in my opinion to gain the benefits, the mind blowing powers (which come with second level) of this bloodline, the host will have to suffer. And I know Naruto already suffered a lot, but that's why he has his women besides to support him in every way….every step he takes (ex: the way Anko and Temari helped him and it was because of only the****m****….that Naruto could activate the second level completely). Also some of you might be confused what were the requirements to activate the second level, well most of you should've guessed by now…but if not, I'm going to tell you guys anyway in the future chapters.**

**Enough with my rants and explanations, if you have doubts, confusions, do PM or review me….I'll get back to you as fast as possible. Also…..one last thing **_**'sniff' 'sniff'**_**, please REVIEW(this is the line I've been saying since the beginning ne? ^_^) . I really worked hard for this chapter….and I hope I get the sweet fruit in the form of reviews this time…..pleeeaaseeee? But….ahm, thanks for reading and I really….really hope that you liked this long chapter. So take care everyone and see you in the next chapter!**

**N6023**


	28. Solidifying the Defences

**Hello there my faithful readers and friends! Here's another update with a long chapter...so I hope you enjoy it!**

**Now let's get on with this sucker-**

**Chapter-28****-Strengthening the Defenses**

"Even with three tomoes…..you couldn't see my attack," said Naruto with a smirk as he continued to walk forward while his shadow clone which he put quite a chakra in was standing in guard for Anko and Temari.

"Shutup loser!," growled Sasuke as dark purple chakra started to leak out of the enraged Uchiha, who had quite some bruises, blood flowing down his forehead while his robes were torn in several places. Naruto though immediately lost his smirk, involuntarily the images of an injured Anko and Temari flashing through his mind making him clench his fists tightly. Raising his own chakra levels, with his white chakra now flaring around his body as a small crater formed beneath his feet…..he growled with a cold tone that sent chills down the Uchiha's spine, his index finger pointing in their direction.

"You're going down teme, both of you!," a firm serious expression on his face while his Rinnegan was activated. Sasuke though shuffled his feet in anticipation and a bit of nervousness for he knew how strong much his ex-blonde teammate was, even though he would never willingly admit it.

_'This time...I'm not gonna attack just head on like the last time, I'll have to remain calm and collected here,'_ the Uchiha inwardly steeled himself as he glanced at the redhead yonbi jinchuriki standing beside him_, _the guy sporting an unfazed expression on his face.

_'But still...this guy here, I hear he's on a whole other level. And his lava release is something to watch out for,'_ he further added to his thoughts while patiently waiting for Naruto to make a move who just kept glaring at them with his cold piercing eyes.

_'I have to think of something to stop these Iwa and Suna shinobi to come through our defenses like that, and most probably they are creating a diversion at the gates and have created an underground passageway or something. We don't have any skilled Earth element users too except a few like Hana-chan...but that wouldn't be enough. What do I do? Even though I know how to do earth nature manipulation, I couldn't control the element earlier effectively due to only pseudo second level unlocking...but now I'm confused. Do I have now full affinity for Earth element or a half affinity for the last fire element...argh! I don't even have a chakra paper to test it__!__ All of my unsealed__ clones__ as well as just now created clones were dispelled earlier due to my condition__, t__hough Kaa-san's shadow clones are still providing a significant resistance but for how much longer, they just keep coming out of no where! At the gates however, we have things under control as per the memories of my clones...I got it! I can just summon the Earth's boss dragon to find a possible underground __tunnel__ and destroy it seeing as...that is IF I have the full affinity here. Oh well, let's __just __see then,'_ the blonde jinchuriki thought, his mind running mile a minute as he planned for any possible solution to these endless reinforcements arriving out of nowhere. He could see that the average jounins and chunins were at their limits while elite jounins like Kakashi, fire queens and Gai were slowly getting exhausted too.

Going through set of several handseals at a fast blurred pace, he said...

"**Doton: Doryuudan **(Earth Release: Earth Dragon Projectile)," while Sasuke's tomoes spun rapidly as he tried to copy the technique making Naruto smirk at the Uchiha.

_'Very unlikely Sasuke...you only have two major affinities, even if you do manage to copy it, like Itachi-nii said, that would be the weakest form of the technique combine to the fact that Earth is not your strong affinity, it's not going to work,'_ thought the blonde as he put the required amount of chakra...no, what he usually put in this technique expecting somewhat improved results. Though what he got completely took the whiskered user by surprise for just as he had moulded the chakra, a HUGE dragon made of a mixture of sand and hard earth particles rose from the pile of sand before, as controlled by Naruto, it went at lightning speeds towards the standing duo.

_'What the fuck! Now earth element too!,'_ thought Sasuke with a frustrated expression as he watched the earth dragon come at him at speeds what would be extremely impressive considering it's huge structure.

Roshi jumped out of the way while Sasuke too, using his fully matured Sharingan dodged it easily as the dragon continued to head towards where other battles were taking place.

Naruto though, who was holding his hand in the rooster seal to maintain the technique as well as control the dragon had an awed expression on his face.

Meanwhile, the Earth dragon roared over the other groups containing Konoha and mostly Iwa & Suna who were fighting amongst themselves. Though all current actions stopped when they noticed a large shadow forming on their forms. Turning their heads, their eyes went wide upon gazing at the menacing dragon whose eyes were glowing with chakra, it's mouth open when suddenly an idea clicked in Naruto's head when he remembered Kushina's lesson on collaborating elemental techniques with each other. Releasing the rooster one, he again went through some handseals before ending them on the monkey one.

"**Raiton: Kangekiha **(Lightening Release: Inspiration Wave), he exclaimed while pouring the lightning natured moulded chakra into the earth technique. The effects were instantaneous as a ball of glowing blue lightning started to form inside the earth dragon's mouth making the shinobi amongst which Konoha shinobi were present too, panic.

"What's that thing?," yelled one incredulous Konoha jounin, thinking of it as an attack by another Iwa nin, rooted to their spots as they thought of a possibe escape while the Iwa and Suna nins had dropped their guards thinking it was the work of one of their comrades when suddenly the earth dragon fired off a concentrated beam of lightning.

BOOM!

Leaf jounin's jaws were on the ground as they saw the dragon which was supposed to attack them, decimate half of the enemy troops in a matter of seconds while the other half couldn't believe their eyes.

"W-Why is it attacking us?," exclaimed another Iwa jounin who was standing amongst the remaining half as they watched the dragon collide itself into the dusty area where it had fired the attack previously, completely shattering all hopes of the those squished nins surviving such attack.

"Kurenai...did you see that?," muttered Hana who was now panting a bit when the red eyed jounin replied.

"How did he do that? I thought he couldn't control the earth element completely. And to use it in collaboration with lightning element...how did he gain such chakra control so suddenly?," pondered Kurenai as they now were almost out of chakra due to fighting large number of jounins in just a couple of hours.

"Well, the most logical explanation would be is that Naruto-kun's Rinnegan has fully reached level two, and improved chakra control might be one of its benefits. And it's reasonably understandable that he now has a strong affinity for Earth element according to the scroll we read," said Yugao as they had defeated their share of their enemies while Kai and Gai were going at them.

"Hana-chan...could you like possibly use some kind of earth technique to find out where these reinforcements are arriving from?," said Kurenai as she prominently ate a foodpill to restore her chakra reserves with Hana and Yugao doing the same.

"No, I don't have any type of sensor technique to find seismic disturbances or something like that," muttered Hana as she gazed worriedly upon the lying form of Anko and Temari.

"You three, we need a hand here!," they heard Kakashi's distant voice when they saw the duo rivals were being overwhelmed by the amount of enemies.

"Damn! Let's go you two," hissed Kurenai in frustration before the trio dashed towards the struggling leaf jounins.

Meanwhile, Naruto had his eyes bugged out anime style as he gazed upon the destruction his technique had caused. There wasn't a trace of any body left while a large crater in the sand had formed whereas other jounins present there had shocked expressions on their faces.

"Why didn't it attack us?," muttered a leaf jounin as she turned her head along with others to see where the dragon had came from for them to notice Sasuke and an unknown redhead standing there making their eyes widen.

_'The Uchiha!,'_ they thought simultaneously before they were focused on the battle currenttly under their collars. Taking advantage of the startled expressions of their enemies, the leaf jounins with chunins in the mix attacked them mercilessly. Naruto though was busy in his own thoughts as he tried to come to terms with his new found strength.

_'T-That's something I didn't expect. It's amazing! My chakra control has improve__d__ drastically...I could easily mould __my __chakra this time compared to when I__fought Gaara. Well, the scroll did say that my chakra control along with the reserves would increase...but to actually feel it __so __is astounding. If these are the benefits I gain from the second level, then I'm ready to go through the pain again,'_ he thought with an amazed expression on his face. Activating the Rinnegan with his new found chakra control, he wasn't surprised...rather excited when he noticed his vision much sharper than before, the chakra points in Sasuke's body which earlier weren't visible to the first level of his doujutsu, now he could somewhat define them though not to the Byakugan's extent seeing as those chakra points were still a bit hazy, but nevertheless they were visible. However, he immediately deactivated it considering he wanted to preserve chakra.

_'Just you wait Orochimaru...I'm coming right up there after I take care of these two,'_ thought Naruto as he gazed through the corner of his eyes up there on the roofs where the large barrier was present, the water wall along it's edges hindering any normal person's view though Naruto had seen through it with his Rinnegan and was shocked to find nine chakra networks in there.

THAP!

Sasuke's eyes widened when he found his fist which he had aimed at Naruto's head caught by the blonde's hand whose head was still facing towards the barrier.

"How did you...," the Uchiha trailed in shock as he saw the blonde easily stop his attack.

_'He wasn't even looking at me!,'_ thought Sasuke with an incredulous expression.

"I see you've learned to attack sneakily just like that snake freak," said Naruto who still hadn't taken his eyes off the barrier making Sasuke grit his teeth as he tried to pull back his fist which Naruto, much to his surprise let it go. Flipping back to create some distance from the blonde, Sasuke skidded to a halt besides Roshi as he held his fist which was tightly clenched over by Naruto's hand.

Turning his head back, the blonde jinchuriki immediately dashed towards the duo in a barely visible blur to any naked eye.

WHOOSH!

Sasuke barely dodged a punch aimed at his face while Roshi caught Naruto's leg which was aimed at his mid-section. Placing his other hand on the sandy surface with his leg still caught in Roshi's hand, Naruto twisted his body in mid air at blazing speeds before he used the other idle hand to create a half seal.

POOF!

The Uchiha was sent hurling across the sandy surface due to an extremely fast punch by one of the two kage bunshins which Naruto had created who hhad used the puffed smoke to their advantage.

The two shadow clones lunged at the Iwa jinchuriki who was forced to leave Naruto's leg as he flipped back with a punch and a kick, courtesy of the two shadow clones, passing just over his face.

"**Shinra Tensei,"** whispered the orginal Naruto, who still was supporting his body on one hand while Roshi was in mid-air, in between his flip. The red head was immediately flown back while spiraling up and down in midair at blazing velocity towards where Sasuke had just stood up while holding his possible broken nose. The clones however gave no time whatsoever before they ran full speed towards the Uchiha who immediately went through a few hand seals at fast pace.

"**Katon: Ryuuka no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Dragon Fire Techniue)," the raven haired Uchiha yelled before he exhaled large amounts of fire from his mouth which took shape into that of a blazing hot dragon. The clones though easily jumped over the dragon due to their momentum, dodging the attack as they skidded to a halt behind Sasuke.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**," Naruto's eyes widened, who was standing in front of Sasuke as he saw the Uchiha create two shadow clones who dashed towards the two clones behind Sasuke.

'_Either he copied that from me during the preliminaries or Orochimaru must have taught him,'_ he thought when he used a chakra enhanced jump to dodge several balls of lava which were aimed at him.

'_Lava release? So this guy must be the yonbi jinchuriki,'_ pondered Naruto with a grim expression before he landed on the surface.

"Naruto….," trailed Anko as she watched the fight go on with the clone standing in front of her.

"Don't worry Anko-chan…..boss has got things under control," the clone said over his shoulder with a smile as he continued to guard the injured form of Anko along with an unconscious Temari.

Standing up, Naruto gazed at the slightly bruised form of Iwa jinchuriki who apparently didn't look affected by his previous attack, while averting his eyes to the side, he noticed that his two clones had dispelled Sasuke's clones relatively easily and were keeping the Uchiha busy.

'_Got to take care of this guy here…..Sasuke isn't much of a big threat anyway,'_ thought Naruto as he narrowed his eyes at the jinchuriki in front of him who was raising his chakra levels at a fast rate. Getting ready while crouching his knees a bit….

"AAGGHH!," Naruto doubled over in pain when Roshi suddenly blurred in front of him to deliver a swift punch to his gut.

'_I didn't even see him!,'_ thought the blonde jinchuriki before he activated the Rinnegan immediately and blocked a knee thrust which was aimed at his nose. Displaying amazing acrobatics, keeping his hand on his knee, Naruto delivered a vertical roundhouse kick to Roshi's head making him stumble back while the blonde himself landed on sand with astounding agility.

'_I shouldn't have underestimated him,'_ the whiskered blonde thought as he wiped the blood off his mouth before he dashed full speed at the slightly dazed Roshi who was holding his head. The Iwa jinchuriki surprisingly dodged Naruto's kick before apparently both of them blurred out of sight as they traded lightning fast blows with each other, the battle now being of pure taijutsu as their blurred movements picked up sand around the area. They would however, appear for a second with their hands locked in a duel before again disappearing in blurs.

However, Sasuke was getting frustrated as he was getting pummeled in taijutsu by the two clones, his Sharingan helping him to barely dodge the blows but he was receiving quite a few of those.

'_I can't even keep up with his clones, who are much weaker than the original one,'_ the Uchiha thought before he suddenly used a chakra enhanced jump when he found an opening. While in midair, he unsealed another katana from the scroll before charging lightning chakra through it as he launched himself at the two clones. Using the gravitational momentum to his advantage, he lunged towards the clones who strangely just stood there.

"TAKE THIS!," yelled Sasuke as he shoved his sword in one of the clones before taking it out and slicing the other one at his mid-section expecting them to puff into smoke. His eyes widened though when they began to glow before…

BOOM!

A violent explosion took place where the clones were previously standing making Naruto smirk in between his fighting as he got the clone's memories back.

'_I see the teme has improved over the month….but not enough,'_ thought Naruto as he continued to trade bone crushing blows with Roshi who just kept a cold and a stony expression.

"Phew….would've died certainly if I'd got caught in that explosion," muttered Sasuke to himself who had substituted himself with a random kunai which was laying on the sand.

"Psst….Orochimaru's rubbing your ass sensually," Sasuke's eyes widened when he heard a voice behind him. Snapping his head back, he was kicked in the face rather hard making him fly back yet again before he skidded on the sand….again while holding his definitely broken nose….again.

"Next time check where you are substituting teme!," yelled the clone who was standing in front of Anko, the latter of which was struggling to control in her laughter….and settled to only chuckle to herself due to her weakened condition.

"That…..was fucking awesome!," she said weakly while chuckling to herself making the clone grin back at her sheepishly.

BHOOSH!

The sound of a punch connecting resounded making Anko turn her head for her to see Naruto and Roshi standing with each of their fists embedded into the other's cheeks. Naruto was gritting his teeth as he pushed his fist harder with Roshi doing the same…both of them trying to overpower each other.

"Naru-kun….," she trailed in worry for him while the clone just smiled reassuringly at her. She knew that he was immensely strong and that he was still holding back….but couldn't help be worried for him.

'_Fuck it! No need to preserve chakra anymore….besides I've got huge chakra reserves combined with Ayumi-chan's chakra AND the youki stored in the Ushio curse seal….which is roughly now about seven tails. If I continue to hold back any longer, more reinforcements will probably arrive and Kakashi-sensei and others don't look in any shape to take any more of those jounins,'_ thought Naruto as he brought his other hand in a half ram seal to while passing his chakra through the numerous seals which were placed on his different body parts.

'_Level two should be enough right now….,'_ he involuntarily pondered before quietly whispering to himself.

"Kai," opening his eyes he could feel the effects as some more gravity seals deactivated this time making him feel much lighter….like a weight was lifted off of him. Roshi was barely able to even blink when Naruto's kick connected with his ribs making the Iwa jinchuriki cough some blood when the blonde delivered an ultra fast left hook making Roshi's feet lift off the sandy ground due to force of the blow before he impacted the sand several meters away to form a crater.

Naruto though had other thoughts going on in his mind as he had noticed something from up close in Roshi.

'_His chakra….it's wavering in his coils. He's under a genjutsu! But who could be so strong so as to control a jinchuriki and make him fight like this….well, that explains why he appears like a machine with his eyes practically devoid of any life,'_ thought Naruto before he again vanished out of sight when he appeared besides a standing Roshi who apparently was still unaffected by the rib crushing blow from Naruto.

Putting his hand on his forehead quickly, Naruto released a burst of high amount of chakra to disturb the flow of his chakra before jumping back.

'_What! Impossible…nothing happened!,'_ thought Naruto with a stunned expression as he stared at the apparently still a robotic Roshi. Usually, Naruto could dispell almost any genjutsu due to his high amount of chakra reserves, and hence by spiking his chakra for a short time…he had dispelled some of the Kurenai's best genjutsus before.

"Whoever we're dealing with is extremely strong here….could it be that same stranger who attacked thirteen years ago?," the blonde muttered to himself when he noticed Roshi going through handseals at extremely fast pace.

"**Youton: Kazanfunka no Jutsu **(Lava Release: Volcanic Eruption Technique), slamming his hands down on sand surface, Naruto's eyes widened when he felt the earth beneath him shake before the sand beneath his feet started glowing yellowish-orange in colour. Using his increased speed, he jumped high into the air using chakra beneath his feet, though his eyes did widen when the sand bursted violently for it to reveal a huge column of hot lava heading up towards Naruto who created a sealless kage bunshin. Grabbing the original blonde's arm, the shadow clonde threw Naruto towards Roshi in midair with a display of amazing strength.

_'Let's see if one handed Rasengan is possible now'_

The clone though was immediately engulfed in the huge column of lava while the original one kept his hands at his side while falling head first towards Roshi at high speeds with the wind whizzing his trenchcoat as well as his spiky blonde locks.

_'Rotation...compress the chakra...keep it going'_

_"_**RASENGAN!**," roared Naruto as he plunged his hand which contained the wildly rotating ball of white glowing chakra. The attack though only grazed with the Iwa jinchuriki's shoulder who had jumped sideways just in time making Naruto slam the deadly technique into the sand forming a corkscrew crater in the ground inducing large amount of dust around the area of impact. Roshi though just continued to stand a meter or two away from the dust before he took out a kunai. The fabric on his shoulder, which was bleeding a bit, was torned while it seemed like the yonbi jinchuriki wasn't feeling any pain.

However, he looked down at the surface when he felt it move a bit beneath his feet. Two hands suddenly shot up from the sand to grab his legs tightly before Naruto pulled him into the sandy surface and finally into the hard ground. Some seconds later, the blonde jumped out from the surface, sand falling off of him as he shook his head to get rid of the dry sand particles.

Turning his head after he had landed, he wasn't surprised to see a bruised and a tattered unconscious Sasuke laying in a sand crater with blood leaking down his nose.

_'He did improve very much this past month...but still, nowhere near my level,'_ he thought when his eyes widened upon feeling large amount of youki being released making Naruto snap his head in the direction where he had buried Roshi.

_'Is he using the yonbi's chakra?'_

The sand explodedbefore a blurry figure jumped out of it to land on the ground. Naruto though wasn't surprised to see the jinchuriki in front of him enveloped in a cloak of red chakra...making him sigh.

"Guess I'll have to fight him like this," muttered Naruto to himself as he glanced sideways in the direction of Anko, noticing that she had slipped into unconsciousness, probably due to her weakness while his clone was standing on full guard.

Naruto though jerked his head forward when he heard the sound of someone's feet impacting with the sand.

"You...," the blonde trailed in recognition of the dark skinned man standing in front of him...someone who he had seen with the Raikage before.

"Yo Naruto, the names Killer Bee," came the sing song greeting of the hachibi jinchuriki making the whiskered blonde sweatdrop.

_'Ah yes...he was the one who raps like crazy,'_ he thought before smiling somewhat awkwardly at the man in front of him while Roshi continued to stare at Naruto with his demonic eyes...the cloak now consisting of two tails behind him.

"What are you doing here Bee-san?," Naruto said as he got serious while Bee grinned at him.

"I'll take care of this Iwa dude, and make him lick my sandy boot," Naruto's eyebrows started to twitch as he spoke.

"Are you sure? That guy's a jinchuriki you know...," trailed Naruto, hoping to get the meaning across when he heard the serious voice of the man in front of him.

"Just go and help your girlfriend Naruto...I will handle things here fuck yo!," Bee said while Naruto's eyebrows lifted in surprise when he sensed youki slowly start to leak from him.

_'So he's the hachibi jinchuriki then. Guess this makes things somewhat….easier for me,'_ he pondered before replying to the dark skinned jinchuriki.

"Alright Bee-san….though be careful. He looks to be in some sort of extremely powerful genjutsu which I can't seem to break. I only way I think you can wear off the jutsu off that Iwa nin is to knock him out, but don't kill him as it seems he was forced into this," said Naruto while walking closer to Bee before he stopped to stand beside him.

"Got it….now go"

"Thanks….Bee-san," Naruto spoke with a smile as he turned and extended his hand towards Bee who stared at Naruto in momentary surprise before his lips curled upwards slightly, forming into a smile before both of them shook hands.

"No problem'o kid. Hope we can meet when all this shit's over," Naruto grinned back as they released their hands.

"I sure hope so….see ya later!," he said before shunshining out in a puff of smoke. Appearing several meters away, he bit his thumb before going through several handseals, after which he slammed both of his hands on the sand.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**," the area was immediately filled with white smoke which slowly disappeared to show Naruto standing on one of the two giant toads he had summoned.

"Gamaken, Gamahiro….I want you guys to follow my clone's orders. The village's under attack, the rest he will explain it to you guys. But first of all….take Anko-chan and Temari-chan to the hospital," Naruto spoke out aloud, pointing at the two unconscious females while the two toads had their eyes widened as they saw the destruction and havoc which was wreaked upon the now heavily damaged stadium before them.

"Naruto….what-"

"Just go you two!," they snapped their heads to see Naruto staring somewhere above….at the roof. Sensing that the situation was critical and needed action, they immediately jumped over to where Anko and Temari were laying. Picking both of them gently with the clone, who was possessing plenty of chakra, jumping on Gamaken's head…the summoned toads took off with a jump.

'_Now that that's taken care of….,'_ again going through the same set of handseals as before, the blonde this time put….large amounts of earth natured chakra into the technique before he put his hand on the sand again.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**," he yelled before suddenly jumping away when the area again was enveloped into a huge cloud of white smoke which slowly cleared for Naruto's eyes to widen when he saw the creature before him.

"Um….would you….by any chance, happen to be Dilong-sama?," said Naruto hesitantly while the creature in front of him narrowed his eyes at the blond. Standing in front of him, was a huge brown serpentine dragon….possible taller than Gamabunta, his eyes blood red with no pupil whatsoever, five claws in each of its limb and most importantly, it didn't have any wings.

"**Yes I am….though I will decide if I'll kill you or not based upon what's your name,"** Naruto gulped nervously as he stared upwards at the intimidating dragon whose head was now just inches away from the blonde's small stature compared to its size….its harsh breath blowing away his hair and his trenchcoat.

"Uzumaki Naruto," he spoke with a clear stern voice….somehow managing to shoo away his nervousness he was feeling a moment ago. The dragon though, kept looking at him….his eyes now glowing before they widened as Naruto heard a vibrating growl escape from its large mouth, it's sharp salivated fangs showing before it raised its head while gazing at Naruto.

"**So….you're our summoner. I have to say you're worthy indeed….the pain and suffering you endured and your kind heart, you sure are a true Uzumaki….even if you are no longer by blood**," it said and Naruto could've sworn that the dragon had a smirk on it's face.

"**I see you****r ****village's being attacked as informed by one of my minions which you summoned a while ago. So, whose ass do you want me to kick right now?,"** it said with its booming voice making Naruto serious as got back to the point.

"You see, many enemies have been entering our village even when we have strong defenses at our gates. There are no activities in the skies…..so it only means that they are coming through underground means. I just wanted you to possibly find that secret route they are using as you're the boss of earth type dragons," said Naruto politely while bowing a bit.

"**Such a simple task, you could've summoned ****one ****of the earth type rookie claws for this**," it growled making Naruto's eyes widen as he thought to reply quickly…unless he wished to incarnate the wrath of such being upon him.

"I'm sorry for that Dilong-sama…..but I also need you to destroy that route and possibly the enemies who are using it right now. And besides….you could go to the frontlines where you can help my comrades there in protecting the village," the blonde shinobi spoke as beads of sweat rolled down his nervous face, though he snapped his head upon hearing a violet explosion behind the huge creature in front of him.

"Well, they sure are going at it full force," he muttered to himself upon seeing that both of them had tailed beast cloaks upon their bodies as they fired a concentrated blast of red youki at each other.

"**Fine then…let's just hurry up and get this finished. But remember this, I wouldn't be so lenient next time. You cannot just summon us boss dragons for small tasks like this**," it said while Naruto just bowed his head.

"It wouldn't happen again!," he said with a loud voice.

"**Though….I'll admit that sometimes doing these small things isn't bad, but don't let this get to your head kid,"** Naruto smirked before summoning another kage bunshin.

"Take a clone with you Dilong-sama….he'll lead you around the village," Naruto said aloud making the dragon nod with him who suddenly closed his eyes making Naruto blink in confusion as to what the dragon was doing. Slamming it's leg on the sand violently, the blonde (Rinnegan now deactivated) noticed that his body started glowing a bit before it died down after several seconds.

"**Found it**," Dilong declared making Naruto's eyes widen in shock.

"Already?," he exclaimed making the dragon glare at him.

"**What? You doubt my abilities boy?**," it asked in a threatening tone making Naruto shake his head furiously.

"**You might wanna hurry considering that I felt seismic vibrations through the large tunnel I sensed in the earth. It only means that more forces would be arriving soon, though it would be best if I destroy the exit before they reach the end,"** it said somewhat offhandedly making Naruto's eyes go wide in surprise when the clone suddenly jumped at the dragon's serpentine back.

"**Hold tight kiddo, cause it's gonna be a blur to you," **it said as the clone applied chakra to it's feet to stick himself when the dragon, at mind boggling speeds….flew? Hovered? Dashed? The blonde didn't know….but that dragon was fast, EXTREMELY fast if the aftermath of its flight was any sight to take in-huge amount of dust was unleashed upon the combatants in the arena while large volume of sand was dispersed into the air, the shower of sand grains now falling in the arena.

'_Damn! He could've warned me for this,'_ thought Naruto as he continued to cough out dust before he shunshined out of the arena.

"I'll tell you Kurenai-chan…..he never ceases to amaze me," said Yugao in wonder who had seen Naruto summon that huge dragon. Just looking at that huge thing, she almost pitied her enemies….ALMOST!

"Heh….yeah, though-," she stopped in between her statement when suddenly she plunged her kunai backwards (through the gap between her arm and ribs), her years of honed sixth sense of danger kicking in.

"You think you can sneak on me so easily huh?," Kurenai said with narrowed cold eyes as she pushed the kunai deeper.

"Kurenai-chan…NO!," the genjutsu mistress heard Hana's panicked voice making her eyes turn towards the Inuzuka heiress to see her staring behind her, an expression of horror on Hana's face, with Yugao sporting the same look.

"K-Kurenai-chan….w-what?," Kurenai's eyes widened in shock, her heartbeat increasing as she heard that familiar voice….no, please no!

'_Oh no…please kami no,'_ she prayed with a look of total terror of her face as she turned around slowly….as if afraid to check who was behind her. And she turned around completely, her hands now began to tremble as she released the kunai which was embedded into the flesh of the one behind her.

"N-No….N-Naruto…," her trembling hands involuntarily covered her mouth in quiet shock as she stared at his face, blood seeping down his mouth as he held his stomach where the kunai was plunged deep there, blood coating the metal kunai and as it dropped from its handle….Kurenai's heart being clenched with each drop of his precious blood falling onto the cold concrete surface.

"K-Kurenai-chan…why?"

"N-Naruto-kun…..I-I'm so sorry…p-please….y-your bleeding!," she exclaimed as tears started to pour out of her eyes when the blonde jinchuriki smiled at her.

"I d-dreamed s-so much…h-having my first time with y-you….have many k-kids with you….b-but y-you squashed all that…why?," Kurenai though would've have blushed furiously if not for the situation in front of her.

"I-I'm so s-sorry N-Naruto," she stuttered as Hana and Yugao stood frozen in their places, tears fully cascading down their sweaty faces due to all the fighting.

"Sayonara you three….I love you," Naruto said in between his coughs making Kurenai's eyes widen.

"NARUTO NO!," all three of them screamed simultaneously as they lunged towards him...their eyes widening when he just grinned at them.

"Fooled ya!," he exclaimed before puffing into smoke making their eyes bug out in surprise.

"W-What?," stuttered Hana in shock when suddenly they heard someone burst out laughing behind them.

"HAHAHAHAHA...ehehehe, oh man...AHAHAHAHA" snapping their heads back, the oxygen just got trapped in their throat when they saw their favourite blonde laughing like crazy while pointing a finger at them.

"Y-You two...AHAHAHAAHA...just l-look at your f-faces...c-classic!," Naruto said while hollering in laughter as tears escaped his eyes.

"Y-Your alive?," stuttered Yugao as she wiped her tears quickly to clear her hazy vision due to the warm liquid in her eyes while eventually the trio narrowed their eyes at him.

"T-This is t-the g-greatest p-prank EVER! I gotta s-sho-umph!," he was interruped when he was tackled by three blurs making the group fall down the stairs.

"OW...OW...Hey watch out! AH MY BACK!," multiple voices could be heard from the falling group before they crashed to lowest row of seats there.

"YOU IDIOT!"

"ITAI!," Naruto yelled in pain as Kurenai started to shake a laying Naruto violently who had cushioned their fall while Yugao just stood up quietly whereas Hana started to pull on his ear harshly.

"Hey Hey...I was only joking!," Naruto spoke frantically as he tried to defend himself while Kurenai and Hana continued to assault him with tears of relief? Frustration? Anger?

"That's enough you two!...Just leave him. We have enemies to take care of remember?," Kurenai and Hana heard Yugao's emotionless cold voice making their eyes widen in surprise as they promptly stood up while Naruto blinked in surprise upon hearing Yugao. Her voice sounded like that whenever she was angry...or upset over something. Naruto knew her very well...for she too just hid her pain like he used to during his academy days.

Slowly standing up, Naruto started to dust his trenchcoat as an odd silence ensued between the four except the random explosions and sounds of fighting around the stadium. He could hear the occassional sniffs escape Kurenai or Hana as they wiped their eyes...his eyes casting down in guilt.

_'I'm an idiot...shouldn't have gone that far'_, thought the blonde jinchuriki when he heard Yugao speak.

"Where did you take Anko-chan and Temari-chan to Naruto?," her back still turned to him making his eyes widen when he noticed the lack of '-kun' at the end of his name.

"My clone took both of them to the hospital. But Anko-chan's condition is stable and would recover in a day or two whereas Temari-chan suffered chakra exhaustion", he muttered quietly as he noticed that Kurenai and Hana were still silent...both of them having disturbed expressions on their faces as they stood besides him while he noticed that Kakashi and Gai were now nowhere to be found.

_'I really shouldn't have done that'_, he thought before he walked upto Kurenai and suddenly took her into a hug...startling her while she unconsciously hugged him back whereas Hana too was surprised while Yugao didn't look back.

"Um...I'm sorry Kurenai-chan, I didn't know this would affect you so deeply", he said in an apologetic tone, a small smile on his face as he rubbed her back gently while she rested her head on his shoulder, tightning her arms around him.

"It's alright, I can't stay mad at you for long anyway. But don't you ever do that again!," the genjutsu mistress said in a threatning tone making Naruto chuckle nervously.

"Wouldn't dream of it", he stated when he slowly released her before leaning close to her and capturing her lips in a chaste kiss making her ruby eyes widen a bit in momentary surprise...before she closed them and kissed him back. The kiss was gentle and sweet while Kurenai felt her heart flutter at the contact. Withrawing slowly, Naruto smiled at her while scratching his backhead as she too smiled back a bit shyly, both of their cheeks tinted a light shade of pink. Leaning close again, he softly kissed her forehead making her giggle a bit while Hana just smiled at them, wiping her own remaining tears.

Squeezing Kurenai's hand lightly, he offered her his foxy grin before slowly walking upto Hana who looked at him a bit nervously, a small cute blush on her face as she fidgeted with her jounin vest. She couldn't believe how Naruto could make her feel with just his piercing gaze, his sparkling blue eyes...she was still a teenager and felt just as giddy and at the same time comfortable in his presence.

Naruto though smiled at her apologetically before slowly taking her into a tight hug making Hana smile in content as she too pressed him tightly to her.

"Nothing needs to be said Naruto-kun...you ARE the son of nee-chan, so we can't expect anything less from you", the Inuzuka hieress said with a smile making him smile. Pulling out of the hug, the whiskered blonde smiled warmly at her making some heat rush to her cheeks in anticipation. Though her expression did saddened a bit when Naruto turned around towards Yugao making her sigh when she heard him.

"Oh...I forgot something!," he exclaimed before turning back and taking her soft lips in between his as he rubbed his lips against hers gently. Hana too immediately kissed him back as she closed her eyes while Yugao was just standing with her back still towards him...as if, waiting for them to finish. Rubbing her soft cheeks gently, he wiped the moisture of her tears off her skin as she kissed him back lovingly...her worries for him flying away as she felt his warm body in her arms. Slowly leaning back, Naruto grinned at seeing a dazed expression on her face as she licked her lips to savour the kiss. Leaning forward, he lightly kissed her small cute nose making her blush a bit while Kurenai was smiling fondly at Naruto...glad that he was alive and safe. Her heart had almost stopped when she had seen his blood falling off his stomach. Though she blushed furiously upon remembering what his clone had said about having kids.

Meanwhile Naruto turned towards Yugao who STILL hadn't looked back, like she was just content in ignoring the blonde.

"Um...you two, would you mind helping me?," whispered Naruto lowly to Kurenai and Hana...both of whom looked sadly towards Yugao before they just grinned at Naruto mischievously.

"Good luck Naruto-kun", both of them spoke in a hushed tone making the blonde's eyes widen before they vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Damn it!," he cursed silently to himself as he now took a deep breath. Yugao though, sensing that Kurenai and Hana had shunshined away prepared to leave.

"Take care Naruto...I have to help the others now", she said with a bit of quiver in her voice making Naruto's eyes widen when he suddenly grabbed her hand.

"Yugao-chan...I'm really sorry", he said as he now hugged her gently from behind when he felt her body stiffen a bit.

"Leave me...Naruto", she said making the blonde tighten his grip around her arms as suddenly he formed several shadow clones without any seals who stood on guard around them.

"Naruto please...I forgive you, just let me go", she said making Naruto narrow his eyes at her before he suddenly grabbed her shoulders before turning her around harshly making her eyes widen.

"Why are you ignoring me!," the blonde growled with fierce eyes, noticing that she had her eyes wet while her cheeks had moisture, probably by her wiping her tears.

"I know that just by that stupid prank...you wouldn't ignore me like that", he said again with a fierce tone while Yugao just lowered her gaze. Naruto knew that what he was doing, specially amidst a war, when his village was being attacked was foolish...but he had known that something was bothering her. Half a month ago, she had like...started ignoring him, and though they had went on dates, she had looked somewhat saddened each time he was either with Kurenai, Anko, Hana and other girls. It was like she was...jealous? No...she was not jealous, he could tell that, but it was like...longing in her eyes whenever she looked at him, like she wanted something from him.

"I...please Naruto-kun, we have to ptotect the village. We can talk later", she said softly, still not matching his gaze while he tightened his grip on her shoulders.

"The invasion is quite already under control...I've seen to it. With so many dragon summons and three major toad summons along with our primary defense...it wouldn't take much time to stabilise our condition. And I'm going to help Kaa-san and the others up there...but, first I'm gonna solve this mystery about you. I thought I would talk to you later...but now I am thankful that I performed such a prank. Now I finally get to talk to you...alone", he said seriously, weakening her resolve as tears started to leak out of her eyes...the emotions she had been suppressing finally coming out as she suddenly hugged Naruto closely to her startling the blonde as he promptly hugged her back.

"Yugao-chan, what's wrong?," asked Naruto in a concerned tone as he passed his hands through her soft silky purple hair. She started to sob uncontrollably, wetting his trenchcoat as the blonde just held her close to him while softly patting her back.

Meanwhile, the shadow clones surrounding them had created a strong barrier around the duo so that anyone who would look in their directions would only see the now...almost destroyed empty stands.

After several minutes, the purple haired kunoichi calmed down as Naruto just continued to hold her patiently while her form had stopped shaking.

"Tell me please, what's wrong?," he again asked softly as she leaned back from the hug. Her eyes red while her cheeks were puffy making her look...well all the more cute and beautiful to Naruto.

"Naruto-kun, you...do you like me?," she asked with a blush making the blonde blush a bit in response.

"W-Why are you asking that now?," he said, apparently caught off guard by the sudden question while Yugao just moved her eyes downward.

"I knew it", she murmured to herself quietly while Naruto clearly heard her with his enhanced senses.

"No...I don't like you", he said to her making her heart clench in pain as she desperately tried to stop the fresh oncoming tears.

"Because I...love you", he said with a small blush on his whiskered cheeks making her snap her head as she looked at him widened wet eyes.

"What?," she again asked as if...she hadn't heard correctly and wanted to confirm what she thought she heard was true.

"Geez...yeah, I love you...is it that hard to believe?," he said with an embarrassed smile making her eyes widen.

"Y-You r-really love me? I thought it was only a date thing or like that. You never gave enough attention to me...always interacting with Kurenai-chan, Anko-chan and Hana-chan...but you never just noticed me", she blurted all out with anger entering her voice when suddenly she clamped her mouth with her hands...her eyes widening as she cursed herself inwardly.

_'So that was it...now that I do remember, the other three involved me in talks or other tasks and I wouldn't even notice Yugao-chan because she was always quiet. But in the end...it was my fault after all. No matter how hard I try...I always do commit some mistakes'_, he thought with a saddened expression as he lowered his gaze to the ground...ashamed at himself for how he, although involuntary, ignored her . Kurenai had told him that Yugao too had lost her parents when she was a baby and was an orphan, so she too must feel extremely lonely...and he just ignored her.

_'What a bastard I am!,'_ he thought while clenching his fists in anger while Yugao's eyes widened when a lone tear escaped his oceanic blue eyes.

_'But I would make it up to you...starting right now'_

"Naruto-kun...I'm sorry, I di-," she was interrupted when the blonde suddenly moved in and started to kiss her making her eyes widen in immense surprise as she just stood frozen for a second.

_'He's kissing me!,'_ she thought with some excitement because Naruto had never kissed her so passionately...usually their kisses were chaste, sensual and short, which usually left her wanting for more. Though the others didn't know, Yugao was a closet pervert when it came to Naruto and would many times relieve herself by imagining him touching her all over her body...and would admire his body when he took of his upper body clothes after training.

Naruto though, when he felt her stiffen into the kiss and noticed that she wasn't responding back...his heart clenched in pain. As he began to draw from her slowly, his eyes yet again widened when Yugao suddenly pressed herself onto him and started to kissed him passionately as she hungrily tasted his lips while her hands grabbed his blonde locks.

_'What the...WOW!,'_ Naruto thought in immense surprise, blown away by the hot and passionate kiss as he too now responded to her just as hungrily, if not more.

He started to nibble on her lower soft lip making the kunoichi moan into the kiss as he rubbed her lower back sensually when the blonde snaked out his tongue and started licking her lips. Yugao immediately opened her mouth into the kiss, as they began to tongue wrestle with their bodies rubbing against each other. Surprisingly, the kunoichi won the battle as she began to explore his moist cavern making Naruto completely blow away with the mind blowing pleasure. Wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, she continued to kiss him wildly and passionately as if he was the only thing which could keep her alive. Naruto groaned into the kiss while Yugao too moaned loudly as they eventually seperated from each other with their bodies still pressed against each other. Both of them were now panting, their eyes glazed while Naruto had to say that this was the most passionate and hottest make-out session he ever had.

"Wow", he choked out in a rasped voice while Yugao just had a dreamy look on her face as she licked her lips.

"That was amazing Naruto-kun... out of this planet", she mumbled making the blonde blush who himself was in a stunned state of mind.

_'I...never knew she could kiss like that. But I'll have to say...it was amazing. Well they do say the quite ones are the most perverted ones'_, thought the blonde with a smile as he brought his index finger to her lips to stop her as she was leaning in for another kiss, making her pout cutely at him.

"Later Yugao-chan...but first we gotta take care of what's going on outside", he said with a smile making Yugao blush in embarrassment as she had completely forgot about such an important thing. The clones put down the barrier as they dispelled themselves while Naruto just carressed Yugao's cheek lovingly with a smile.

"I love you too Naruto-kun", she finally said making Naruto smile at her.

"I know...because I'm just that awesome!", he said with a silly grin making Yugao chuckle as she leaned into his hand carressing her cheek.

"Baka", she muttered with a smile when the blonde spoke.

"Remember Yugao-chan...I love you and always will. Though I'm sorry for somewhat not paying enough attention to you...after all, I too have suffered that pain and I'm really sorry to cause you such pain. I love all four of you with my heart equally...you girls are like my sisters as well as girlfriends to me, and I wouldn't have it any other way", a sad smile on his face while Yugao squeezed his hand which was caressing her cheek.

"And we have always loved you with all of our heart and will always do", she said making Naruto's heart swell with happiness.

"Now go Naruto-kun...help nee-chan up there, I know you can do it!," she said with uncharacteristic enthusiasm making Naruto blink his eyes before he just nodded at her with a grin.

"Take care Yugao-chan!," he said with a wave before signing out with a shunshin as she sighed with a smile on her beautiful face, now rejuvenated and ready for some action.

_'I'm now glad too that you pulled that dirty prank on us...for without me knowing that you loved me and with all the tension I was feeling, I may not would've been able to fight at my full potential. Things do happen for a reason I guess'_, she thought with images of a certain blonde filling her head as she moved to get rid of the remaining few enemies.

Meanwhile Naruto just shunshined to just out of the four corner sealing barrier on the roof where other Anbu were standing, ready and waiting for the barrier to go down.

"Naruto-san! What are you doing here?," one Anbu asked as Naruto just stood in front of the barrier with a serious expression on his face.

"I'm going inside there...you guys keep a watch out here", he said while examining the barrier closely.

"Well, Kushina-sama did entered quite a while ago...but be careful in there, I sense very powerful chakra signatures in the barrier", another one spoke making Naruto nod his head as his hands were covered in his white chakra which he put on the barrier.

_'Alright concentrate...I just have to match the wavelength of this barrier with my chakra'_, he thought as he now had his eyes closed. Some moments later, his chakra began to waver a bit before it completely sticked to the flat surface of the barrier like a film through which Naruto jumped in with ease before the chakra applied wore out and he Rasengan'ed through the large water wall.

**Annnddd CUT!Hoped you liked this one too...and hopefully not frustrated by the bit of fluff I put in there because of it being unrealistic or something :)**

**Sorry to those who wanted the emo to get killed...but for plot's sake, I as well as you guys can't have the pleasure so soon. And those of you wondering about Ayumi, she will come and sorry if there was not enough action in this chapter which you guys were expecting ^_^**

**Also, I wanted to ask you guys which fic should I start next...the dimensional one or that NarutoxBleach crossover as described in my profile? Please leave it in a review or PM me. Also, this chapter was long too 8.5K+, so please review cause I really sacrificed precious fingers to type this on my phone. (Yes...I'm frustrated too, but that's the only way I can update right now. Though last chapter I did have access to my desktop, that's why I was able to write 9K+ in three days, but this time I wasn't so lucky and hence it took me longer...but who cares about the reason as long as you get the update and I get some reviews). So yeah, review guys and take care! I'm really glad that you're liking this fic so much and that my hardwork is being paid off for once. Thanks for reading and until next time, goodbye! ^_^**

**N6023**


	29. Kami no Kawarimi

**OMG! 2K+ reviews! This is awesome you guys. Thanks for all the support you've shown me so far...THANK YOU DATTEBANE! ^_^**

**I can't really express how ecstatic I am...it's a whole new feeling. Being a new author, I guess this happens to you ne? Next, I'm REALLY sorry for the late update cause I just caught up in...well other things and NarutoxGuren oneshot. Hope this chapter was worth the wait...**

**Now considering after so many days I've updated, you would be itching to read the chapter...so here it is-**

**Chapter-29****-Kami No Kawarimi**

"Well, Kushina-sama did entered quite a while ago…..but be careful in there, I sense very powerful chakra signatures in the barrier," another one spoke making Naruto nod his head as his hands were covered in his white chakra which he put on the barrier.

'_Alright concentrate…I just have to match the wavelength of this barrier with my chakra,'_ he thought as he now had his eyes closed. Some moments later, his chakra began to waver a bit before it completely stuck to the flat surface of the barrier like a film through which Naruto jumped in with ease before the chakra applied wore out and he Rasengan'ed through the large water wall.

"Okie dokie….so whose ass am I kic…..," he trailed as his body stood frozen in shock at what he saw in front of himself.

'_What in the name of __holy y__outhful flames happened here?,'_ he inwardly said to himself, his mouth open as he gazed at the scenery in front of him.

All he could see was a dense forest completely covering the inside of the barrier, large amount of water which was reaching upto his knees while the area was dimly lit due to the rays scattering through the canopy of the foliage. Some of the trees were destroyed, its chunks and pieces of wood floating on the surface of water while he could feel the overwhelming amount of chakra which was trapped inside the barrier, even the air seemed to be dense because of it.

His Rinnegan activated, he could see nine chakra signatures in there.

BOOM!

He snapped his head in the direction of where he heard a violent explosion take place.

"I hope everybody's alright….well except for that snake bastard and his henchmen of course," he said bitterly at the end as he used his chakra to stand on water now.

**Several Minutes Earlier****:**** Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

"Let's do this," Kushina muttered besides whom were standing Hiruzen, Mei and A at some distance.

Bolting forward at blazing speeds, both of their forms a blur, Mito and Mikoto went for a kick at her mid-section and jaw simultaneously. Kushina dodged the attacks with relative ease, her sharingan active as they aimed their fists at her face and her rib region.

'_Strange….they aren't that fast, or is it just my Sharingan?,'_ she thought in midair after flipping back to dodge their attacks at blinding speeds. Landing graciously, she saw their faces….their stony expressions. Turning her pupil sideways, she noticed Hiruzen and Orochimaru going at it while Mei and A were faring much better this time, who were only intent on dodging the shodaime's and nidaime's attacks.

"**Suiton: Baku Suishouha **(Water Release: Bursting Water Collision Shockwave)," Mito muttered while holding a half ram hand seal.

A huge amount of water formed in midair, before the tidal wave flew at Kushina at blundering speeds.

'_Why am I not surprised?,'_ the fiery red head mused before clapping both of her hands tight.

"**Suiton: Suijinheki** (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)," she spoke before a large water wall rose in front of her, reaching the ceiling of the barrier making Mei and A look in surprise in between their dodging.

The tidal wave crashed violently with the water wall as the two humongous techniques collided with each other, both clashing for domination as Mito and Kushina both maintained the techniques.

"**Katon: Teikoku Hiryutama no Jutsu** (Fire Release: Imperial Fire Dragon Sphere Technique)," Kushina heard someone behind her speak. Turning her head back a bit, she was oh so not surprised to see Mikoto release a HUGE amount of fire from her mouth.

The scorching fire took the shape of a large sphere with an extension of a dragon's neck, increasing its reach. Such was the heat being emanated from the technique that the water wall (the walls of barrier created by Nidaime) had started to boil immediately, lightening the whole area.

'_I knew reviving those two was a good idea,'_ the snake sanin thought as he blocked his sensei's staff, a confident smirk on his face.

The fire dragon sphere though bolted towards Kushina, covering the distance between them at frightening speeds.

Releasing her jutsu, Kushina jumped just in time when the fire sphere passed beneath her and collided with Mikoto's technique…rocking the cores of the roof as it vibrated. Both the resurrected females stopped their techniques as drops of water started falling along with small hundreds of fire sparks.

"She must have used that technique to get behind me," Kushina mumbled to herself as she skidded to a halt, her hair flowing with her movements. Pulling out a kunai, she threw it at the duo with amazing strength….justifying just why she was Itachi's teacher.

"**Kunai Kage Bunshin No Jutsu**** (**Kunai Shadow Clone Technique)," she spoke without any hand seals, the lone weapon turning into possibly thousands of kunai as they sailed towards the revived duo.

Mito immediately started to move her hands in midair, as if she was drawing something while the tips of her fingers were glowing blue. Her hand motion revealed a blue glowing seal in midair on which she slammed her hands before muttering.

"**Tenkai **(Expand)," the seal expanded like a wall in front of them before she again spoke.

"**Fuin**," the seal turned black as the kunai collided….or rather were absorbed by the seal like they were they entering another dimension.

"**Rasenren****g****an!**(Dual Spiralling Spheres)," the fiery Uzumaki exclaimed as she slammed two Ransengans onto their backs, after appearing behind them out of nowhere.

The devastating attack twisting their skin of the affected area, Kushina's eyebrows shot up in surprise when both of them dissolved into water.

Her eyes widened when chains protruded out of the tiles to wrap around her tightly. She winced when they began to constrict around her. Turning her head slightly, she noticed the chains bursting forth the tiles to show them coming out of Mito's palms.

"**Chēnsupaikuo tsukande** (Gripped Chain Spike)," she spoke with Mikoto standing beside her.

SQUELCH!

Black spikes expanded from the chains to completely impale Kushina from every possible angle.

POOF!

She puffed into smoke immediately as a form (made of water) started to take shape in the water wall which was covering the barrier, before it completely formed to show Kushina.

_This is getting serious. Even with the Sharingan, I couldn't tell if those were water clones….such is the mastery of Mito-sama over her techniques. And I almost forgot her skill in chakra chains__...not to mention her skills in shape manipulation of raw chakra__,' _she thought with a grim expression before jumping out of the water wall.

Landing on the tiles, her eyes widened when a form flew just inches from her face at blazing speeds to crashed into the tiles. Turning her head, she saw it was the shodaime who was comfortably resting in a crater.

"What did I tell you about dodging?," Kushina asked while glaring at A who was standing in the opposite direction with his lightning armour on.

"Heh…can't resist kicking some hokage ass you know," he said with a smirk making her sigh as she muttered idiot under her breath.

"But please stick to the plan from now Raikage-dono," Mei said with that sick sweet smile making him sweat as he just nodded without any argument.

Turning her head to Mito and Mikoto, Kushina started walking towards them, her eyes cold as water started to materialize around her. It grew in volume…..still growing while some water from the water wall on the edges of the barrier started to float towards her.

'_Let's see what happens when I physically obliterate them completely,'_ she thought as the huge amount of water collected started to form into two large spheres around her. Two shadow clones popped beside her while she put her hands in front of her.

Her palms facing each other, she started bringing her hands closer to each other, gritting her teeth as the water too followed the motion and started to condense in the spheres making them smaller.

Kushina's eyes widened in between her concentration when suddenly Mikoto appeared beside her.

'_This technique…kawarimi!,'_ she thought when Mikoto kicked her while Kushina didn't let her hands go and took it with her shoulder making her fly towards Mito who had just released a concentrated beam of water towards her from her mouth.

She winced in pain midways due to brute strength of the kick while the laser-like water attack drew closer. Righting herself in midair, she planted her feet on the tile making her skid towards the incoming attack.

Applying chakra to her feet, she jumped just in time to dodge the attack…though it did graze her long red hair. Flipping over Mito, she continued to contract her hands; sweat pouring down her face as she gritted her teeth.

Landing on the roof, she kept her hands in position while her shoulders were shaking under the strain of the force she was applying to increase the density of the water, and hence contract its size. The large water spheres though were now no more than the size of a hand which were now dark blue in colour as if they were painted or something.

'_I can't hold on for much longer…the pressure being exerted by water is too much even for me,'_ she thought before sealessly creating two more shadow clones who immediately put their hands on each of her hand, and started applying force towards each other to help her keep her hands in position.

Nodding towards her clones(which she had created before being kicked by Mikoto) who had engaged Mikoto in taijutsu, they jumped simultaneously before taking the now hand sized water spheres in their hands, coating it with their chakra to prevent any damage to themselves and getting dispelled in the process.

"Hurry u-up," Kushina muttered through gritted teeth as sweat continued to pour down her face. Even with the help of clones, she struggling to keep her hands in position.

Her clones, who were holding the water spheres, immediately vanished in a burst of speed before they appeared in front of Mito and Mikoto, their eyes fierce as they slammed the condensed balls into their guts.

"**Bakusuigan! **(Exploding Water Spheres," both clones yelled simultaneously.

"Finally!," Kushina exclaimed before releasing her hands which rebounded due to the force the condensed water was applying on the sphere….the result was- her clones(which were holding her hands) flying in opposite directions and promptly dispelling themselves.

**SPLASH!**

The effect on the water spheres was immediate though, they exploded **VIOLENTLY **with an audible pop**….**completely engulfing both of Mito & Mikoto's bodies as now water returned to its original volume and exploded outwards like a flood had hit the area.

"**Mokutan: Jukai Koutan** (Wood Release: Birth of Dense Woodland)," Kushina turned her head when the whole area which was now filled with water (covering them to the knees) began to shake as trees began to grow out of the surface of the roof.

Kushina began to jump from one branch to another to keep her footing, all the while wondering if her technique had worked.

'_Damn whenever I use this technique it puts a huge strain on my muscles,'_ she thought while rubbing her shoulders to relieve her aching muscles, continuing to jump higher through the trees.

The shaking stopped as now the area resembled a forest which had been hit by a flood due to the knee-hieght water now flowing in the barrier.

_'__What a technique,'_, the fiery redhead thought with bated breath as she gazed upon the forest which was dimly lit(mostly dark) now, now standing upon the highest branch of a tree.

Her eyes widened though when she felt her Ushio curse seal pulsate with chakra.

'_What's happening?,'_ she thought with a bit of fear for she knew that either it was Anko…or Naruto to whom something was happening. Her eyes yet again widened when she felt a HUGE chakra spike, the familiar feeling of peacefulness telling her just who it was.

'_What's happening out there?,'_ Kushina thought with worry as she felt Naruto's chakra levels literally sky rocket just out of nowhere, specifically when the curse seal had started to act strangely. Her gut was twisting in a dreaded way….she didn't like this feeling, either something had happened or something was going to happen.

Immediately tapping her curse seal with chakra laced fingers, she spoke telepathically.

"_Naruto-kun….Naruto-kun, are you there?"_

….

….

No response as she again tried, but still nothing…either the seal was damaged or something had happened to him, but it was unlikely considering the chakra spike. Turning the link to Anko, she again tried…

"_Hey, Anko-chan…you there?,"_ she again spoke.

"_K-Kushina-nee-chan?"_

"_Thank Kami! What's happening out there Anko-chan? I can't contact Naruto-kun anymore! And what was with his chakra spike? Are you alright?,"_ she spoke with a serious expression, desperate to know what was happening to them, and if they were fairing any better.

"_O-Oh…nothing's wrong! Really….everything's fine, you just concentrate up there, we're kicking the enemy's ass here! But I'm busy right now…with helping Naru-kun and all you know, so see you later nee-chan!"_, the link was abruptly cut while Kushina had a suspicious expression on her face.

"She's lying…something's really going out there, but why would she lie to me?," she muttered, for now suppressing her concern for them as she concentrated on finding the duo she was fighting. She would just have to take care of them first….if something did happen to Naruto, she knew he would survive, she had atleast confirmed that part after apparently training him to the ground during the month. Jumping down the branch, she followed where she got her clone's memories from and found nothing there.

"Damn…nothing's here, no bodies. It didn't work then I guess," she murmured to herself when she suddenly tapped her foot on the branch to summon a small water wall behind her to block another chakra chain.

'_They aren't fighting the way they used __to __when they were alive….well atleast not to their full potential. They are just throwing techniques after me without any further planning…either this is a flaw in this technique or Orochimaru himself hasn't been able to complete it yet, meaning the seals he planted are just turning them into mindless beings,'_ she wondered after flipping over to another branch, in the process dodging several paper bomb tagged kunai and shuriken which had had completely obliterated the large branch she was standing on.

"Well, you two may not be able to hear me, but it's really good to see you again Mito-sama, Mikoto-chan," she said with a smile while Mito and Mikoto were standing on different branches with blank expressions.

Mikoto responded by creating four shadow clones while Mito just stood there.

'_Oh no….not now,'_ the fiery red head thought with a nervous expression as she recognized what her best friend was doing. Mikoto's sharingan began to spin wildly when they suddenly just….vanished, and left five leaves falling in mid air.

Kushina's eyes widened as she herself concentrated her sharingan to the maximum.

BAM!

Splinters of wood flew in air due to Mikoto's punch barely missing Kushina's head when four more appeared out of nowhere from above her.

She barely had time to dodge a lightning fast kick when she was punched in the gut by a clone before receiving a kick to her back sending her falling downwards at blazing velocity

WHAM!

CRASH!

BOOM!

She crashed through several thin branches to finally embed into a large trunk of a huge tree, creating a large crater.

"Ow….that hurt for once, damn her punches and kicks are strong," Kushina spoke while holding her back, a thin line of blood seeping down her mouth before she wiped it.

'_Damn this forest! With so many leaves and wood pieces….it's almost impossible to dodge that __substitution__ of hers,'_ she thought before pushing herself off the crater to stand on the water using her chakra, her sharingan active.

"Well I am taking on the Kami no Kawarimi after all, not to mention an ex jinchuriki," she muttered to herself while pushing her hair behind her ear.

"I'll just have to stay on surface then, and….," she paused before jumping away from the tree she had crashed into, to land several meters away on the roof's surface.

"…away from those pieces of wood, who knows what she could substitute herself with."

The revived duo jumped in front of her with those same blank expressions while Kushina had a grim expression on her face as she stared them down. Turning to Mikoto, she gazed into her developed sharingan…eye to eye.

Suddenly, Mikoto bolted towards Kushina with a kunai while Kushina just closed her eyes. Spiking her chakra levels to near tailed beast levels, she easily dispelled the genjutsu.

CLANG!

Kunai grinding against kunai, she had just blocked Mito's straight attack when her eyes widened as she gazed at the kunai.

"No shit!," she exclaimed before Mikoto's kunai pierced a chunk of wood, what should have been her face in the place.

Several meters away, we could see Kushina hiding behind a tree's trunk with a frustrated expression on her face.

'_Damn it! How can I be so careless? Even thirteen years ago, it had been several years since I had fought Mikoto-chan….I have to be careful here, they're going for the kill without any hesitation,'_ Kushina berated herself inwardly as she discarded all the kunai and shuriken she was carrying except one before jumping away from them.

"As far as I remember, the range for her technique to work is about 15-20 meters radius. She's one of those kunoichi who I don't really want to have on my bad side," she said to herself with a smirk before looking around her.

'_Mito-sama was a sensor type kunoichi….they must be on their way here,'_ Kushina thought when she saw them coming from far with her sharingan.

Taking out a kunai she had kept, she went into a defensive stance while a shadow clone popped beside her. Kushina did a half ram seal before speaking…

"**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Dragon Projectile Technique)," a large dragon made of water flew towards the incoming kunoichi, piercing several branches in its way.

Her two tomoes spinning, Kushina sharply noticed the way Mikoto moulded her chakra just when the dragon was about to hit them.

'_Now!',_ releasing the kunai, she flipped back while her clone jumped towards her before going for a chakra punch at the falling kunai.

Pushing chakra in her sharingan, she could clearly see….as if in slow motion. Just when her clone's punch was about to connect with the kunai….

WHAM!

And it did connect, but with flesh instead of cold metal.

'_Heh…it worked,'_ Kushina thought with a smirk as she saw Mikoto fly back to crash through several trunks when Mito land in front of her on the water surface.

_'I__ was right. Their attacks are too predictable, Mikoto-chan would never fall for such a lame trick. She was much more clever with even the simplest of her techniques….she would never__use one of her main attacks so recklessly.'_

Kushina though focused her gaze to see Mito releasing blue chakra which was slowly covering her form in a thin layer, making her form glow blue a bit along with her eyes.

'_Ah…so she's pulling out her techniques too. If their attacks are as predictable and straight forward as I think, then it shouldn't be that difficult. Although it would have been a draw if I fought __Mito-sama__ if she was fully conscious,' _she mused while the shadow clone besides her dispersed herself.

Meanwhile, Mito's form continued to glow as now a thin layer of chakra covered her.

SWISH!

A large demonic hand (like the hand made of kyuubi's chakra in the current war in manga), made of blue chakra shot from her stomach towards Kushina as an extension at thundering speeds while the fiery Uzumaki just smirked.

'_Yep, way too predictable!,'_ she thought when she started to create a seal in midair at lightning pace, her hands a blur….only visible as a trail of sky blue chakra. While she was creating the seal, a water clone had emerged from the water behind Mito who too had started to carve the same seal in midair.

"**Uchu no Jikan ****Renzoku-tai Hen'i: Fuin! **(Space-Time Continuum Displacement: Seal!)," she yelled while slamming her hands on the seal just before the large chakra hand hit the rectangular seal in front of her. She gritted her teeth as the seal started to absorb the blue chakra hand.

Just then, the same chakra hand suddenly shot out from the seal behind Mito before it hit her (who was standing still to maintain the chakra beam emanating from her stomach) and pierced her back creating a large 'see-through' hole. The chakra beam promptly died down while Mito just stood there, a large hole in the middle with a blank expression on her face making Kushina roll her eyes.

'_I wish I could do that,'_ she thought while stroking her chin, probably devising another crazy seal when suddenly another thing came to her mind.

'_But if their attacks are so predictable with no brains behind, then how come shodaime-sama and nidaime-sama are using such astounding teamwork against the Mizukage and Raikage?,'_ she questioned herself while Mito slowly began to heal as flesh began to materialize.

'_They were summoned earlier, could it be that Orochimaru has better control over them than these two? It's unlikely considering that this technique mainly depends upon the seal talismans he planted in them…but whatever, he clearly is ways away from mastering this technique.'_

**Present Time: Naruto's Location**

The blonde was now standing on water as started to scan his surroundings with the Rinnegan.

'_Hmm….so those four are the ones who are holding the barrier. But the red head one….she does seem familiar, wait! Could she be Tayuya, Kin's best friend from Oto? Red hair, that no-bullshit expression on her face….I'm not sure, but I'll have to keep an eye on her,' _he mused before he turned to the giant forest in front of him.

"Let's find Kaa-san first and see how she's doing. From the looks of it, she's taking on two opponents at once…but the chakra signature of one feels familiar," he muttered to himself as he started walking towards the forest. Just when he was about to shunshin, he stopped dead frozen in his tracks.

'_Ayumi….I didn't hear her voice since…since I began feeling like a sick toddler. But, still she hasn't spoken anything,'_ he thought with wide eyes as his heart began to beat faster, worry for her flashing in his eyes.

Creating six shadow clones in front of him, he immediately sat on the water before closing his eyes as he began to medidate.

'_Please let her be __safe__,'_ was the last thought on his mind before he felt that warping pull feeling.

**Naruto's Mindscape:**

Opening his eyes, he scanned his surroundings to see that the forest was completely alright.

_'__So my mindscape was not affected.'_

Slowly walking forward, he activated the Rinnegan as he began to scan his surroundings.

"There she is!," he exclaimed with a smile as he saw her red chakra system, though her laying form quickly wiped it off.

Dashing forward with speeds which would've made A burn with jealousy, he quickly covered the distance in span of minutes.

"OI AYUMI-CHAN!," he yelled from far away as he approached her before skidding besides her laying form.

Roaming his eyes over her body, he made sure that she was not injured. Even though this was the strongest of bijuu, he couldn't stop worrying for her.

_'Thank Kami...thank you very much. I'll sacrifice one bowl of ramen this week as my token of gratitude.'_

His expression saddened though when he saw her tear stained face. Her whiskered cheeks puffy, her lips were curled downwards while her dark kimono had non uniform creases all over it. Its fold was slightly shifted showing more of her D-cups making him blush furiously as he just shook his heads.

Sitting cross legged besides her, he smiled sadly at her before brushing the bangs to the side of her heart shaped face.

"She must have cried herself to sleep….she was worried sick after all, and most probably blamed herself," he murmured to himself as he began to stroke her cheeks gently making her squirm a bit.

"Naruto-kun….don't…," her tone trailed to incoherent words as he adjusted her kimono to cover her partially revealed breast. Leaning down, he kissed her forehead gently before pecking her on the lips ever so lightly so as to not wake her up.

"Naruto-kun…gomei," she again muttered in sleep before slowly her eyes fluttered open, a cute yawn escaping her mouth while her foxy ears twitched a bit making him chuckle as he rubbed her head softly.

"Ayumi-chan?," he called softly when her eyes snapped open, devoid of all grogginess.

"N-Naruto-kun…," she trailed as moisture gathered in her eyes before she took him in a crushing hug at lightning speed.

"I was so worried! What happened? Are you alright?," she spoke with concern dripping from every syllable as she held him tightly to her while he just rubbed her back softly.

"It was not your fault Ayumi-chan...apparently the bijuu dama you used wasn't the main cause. It was the Rinnegan acting up, though it wasn't without a reason for I've already unlocked the second level completely," he spoke in one breath so as to clear any misunderstandings immediately while she just pulled back quickly, a shocked expression on her face. He could identify the relieved look in her eyes as she released a shuddering breath.

"Thank kami…I-I thought that you were seriously injured on the outside and that's why you came here," spoke Ayumi as she rubbed his cheeks tenderly while Naruto just smiled at her.

He could see it, her eyes held so much emotions: worry, love, hunger, need, desire and lust for him.

Leaning forward, she quickly took his lips in a passionate kiss, pouring all of her emotions while Naruto kissed her back just as enthusiastically. Both of their eyes closed, they found themselves drowned in pleasure as she circled her arms around his neck, pulling him more closer to her while he pulled her by her waist. Her tails wrapped around him in affection as they made out with each other. Each movement creating slick pleasurable friction which sent jolting pleasures throughout their bodies. Ayumi though held him tightly to her, afraid to let him go as she tasted his soft lips.

After several more minutes...seconds?, they slowly leaned back so as to regain their breath, both touching their foreheads as they reveled in each other's presence.

"I love you Ayumi-chan, so don't keep getting all softy over me," he said with a chuckle while she just smiled at him.

"Baka, you're the only one I live for and the reason I am still in this seal. I can't help but get concerned over you. And I love you too," she said with a sweet smile while he nodded as a comfortable silence formed between the two.

"You know Naruto-kun, to not be able to protect your loved ones…it's something which hurts and frustrates you the must," she said while he nodded with a sad expression. How could he not agree with it? How could he forget those emotions he felt when Anko took that sword for him….it was dreadful, unbearable, even the thought of that scene made his heart clench.

"The feeling of just watching them suffer when you have the power…but you can't do anything…it's t-terrible," she said while hugging him tighter as he nodded with her.

"Yeah…it must be terrible," he muttered as he rubbed her back to soothe her. After a few minutes, she again spoke after getting a hold of her emotions.

"So, how's the new upgrade coming up?," Ayumi questioned with curiousity, both of them still hugging each other; refusing to let go.

"Awesome…my earth element has been unlocked fully, just summoned the earth boss dragon ya know?," he said with a chuckle making her giggle as she nodded.

"Other things…my eyesight has been sharpened several times, can see chakra pathways more clearly, can cover more distance, should be impervious to genjutsu upto A-rank as stated in the scroll and other things which I might not have noticed," he spoke as she just hmm'ed in response.

"What's the status of the village?," she again questioned when he answered.

**Outside of Naruto's Mindscape: Four Corner Sealing Barrier: Several Minutes Later**

Leaving his mindscape, he came to outer world as he could feel the cold water beneath him with his eyes closed.

_'Glad that Ayumi-chan's okay,' _he sighed in relief with his eyes closed as he took a deep breath.

However, his eyes suddenly snapped open as now they were wide.

"What was that?," he questioned to himself.

"_Naruto-kun, what's wrong?,"_ Ayumi asked from his mindscape when he just closed his eyes again, his eyebrows scrunched up in concentration.

"_I…I can see, I can see everything,"_ he thought to himself in shock when he heard Ayumi's curious voice.

"_What can you see?,"_ she asked while his expression remained to that of shock.

"But how is this possible, I've never heard of any jutsu like this. And if it is related to Rinnegan…the scroll didn't say anything about it," he muttered to himself in shock as he again closed his eyes and channeled more chakra this time.

"I can see more now….AHH!," the blonde exclaimed in pain before he grabbed his head and immediately opened his eyes as he panted a bit.

"_Uzumaki-kun, you are really testing my patience now,"_ he heard Ayumi's sweet voice when he just jumped with an expression of joy on his face.

"THIS IS FUCKING AWESOME DATTEBAYO!," he exclaimed with a bright smile on his face while the clones looked at him like was crazy.

"What's so awesome for you to be dancing like a clown you dumb shit?," a clone asked with a frown making him shake his head while muttering 'Not another one of those personality disorders again'.

"Alright, just turn your heads in different directions," he said as they just turned their heads either upwards, right, left or downwards, all the while muttering about 'crazy boss' or something.

"_NARUTO!"_, he heard Ayumi yell making him smirk as he just closed his eyes again.

"'ttebayo," he muttered with an expression of awe while keeping his eyes closed.

"_I can see what they can see Ayumi-chan…I don't know how to explain it, but whenever I close my eyes and concentrate, I can see what my clones are seeing!," _he told her with a bright smile when silence ensued between them.

"_You serious?,"_ her quiet voice broke the silence when he replied.

"_Of course! Do you think I'll prank you when practically a war is ragin__g__ on?," _he asked with an incredulous expression when outside the barrier, Yugao, Kurenai and Hana sneezed.

"_I don't know what to say, this is an astounding ability,"_ she spoke while her tone indicated the shock she had received.

"_But why did you feel pain just now?,"_ she asked making his expression serious.

"_It would seem that whenever I increase the amount of chakra in my eyes, I can see the field of vision of greater number of clones…but too many of them, and it puts a stress on my brain to process so many visuals at the same time. It's practically more than the three sixty degree __angle __of Byakugan you know."_

"_I see….then about how __many __clones vision__s__ can you safely see right now?"_

"_Hmm….approximately like six to seven should be safe right now."_

"Let's put this ability to test then shall we," he said with a smirk as he along with his clones dashed towards where Kushina was fighting Mikoto and Mito.

**Present Time: Kushina's Location**

"Heh…no matter how many times I hit you both, you just keep coming for more ne?," she said with a smirk while inwardly her own thoughts were going on.

'_That clone sure is taking some time. I guess that seal is somewhat difficult to break…I'll have to stall them longer,'_, she thought while a completely unharmed Mito and Mikoto could be seen standing in front of her. Kushina though had some bruises here and there while her black dress was torn a bit on the shoulder area.

Both of them again dashed towards Kushina who just sighed, she was getting tired of this. Why couldn't her clone create that damned seal faster?

Holding her hand in a half ram seal, two thin beams of water shot out from the water beneath her before they flew towards the revived duo who continued to bolt towards her.

SQUELCH!

It pierced their chests but they still continued to close the distance as if nothing happened making Kushina sweatdrop.

'_Talk about regenerating zombies,'_ she thought before dodging Mito's fist when she grabbed Mikoto's leg and using her other hand performed a handstand kick which connected with Mito's gut sending her stumbling back before she aimed a punch at Mikoto's mid section.

WHAM!

'_What the hell?,'_ thought Kushina as she found herself flying back before she flipped herself in midair to crouch on the surface of water, blood seeping down her chin as she held her ribs.

"Did I just…punched myself?," she muttered to herself while Mikoto was standing besides Mito, both looking like Kami and Yami to her at the moment.

'_No…she substituted with me at the last second and immediately punched me, what a crazy mastery of such a simple academy level technique,'_ she thought before wiping the blood with the sleeve of her black dress.

'_It's no use for me to attack them, and they aren't giving me any time so that I can__'t__ create any seals to seal their bodies completely…well atleast temporarily,'_ she thought to herself before standing up when she felt Mikoto releasing large amounts of chakra.

'_What is she planning now? Kami Mikoto-chan, gimme a break here,'_ she thought while sighing, no longer interested in the fight. What was the use anyway? She just had to stall them and nothing else….what was the use of fighting back when nothing will affect them no matter how strong you are? She'd be rather using her chakra in helping the others in the village than waste it here.

Meanwhile, Mikoto began flashing through several handseals as her hair began to hover in midair a bit due to the chakra, ripples of water flowing outwards as she continued to move her hands in a blur to perform seals.

"**Katon: Kamiryu no Amaterasu **(Fire Release: Divine Dragons of Goddess of the Sun)," she spoke monotonically before releasing blazing hot fire from her mouth; large amount of it as it formed into three large dragons, almost yellow-white in color due to the scorching heat it was releasing while Kushina had to put her elbow in front of her.

"I can feel the heat it's radiating even at this distance," she spoke as she too began to do a long set of handseals, preparing for one of those jaw hanging techniques. The fire dragons though, almost reaching to the top of the trees which could be seen by Hiruzen, Mei and A began to hover towards Kushina at slower speeds due to their sizes and density.

"**Suiton: ****Raijingushinwa Borutekkusu no Jutsu!**(Water Release: Rising Mythical Vortex Technique)," she yelled while putting HUGE amounts of chakra in the technique as a deep vortex started to form on the water surface while it started to rotate around the centre. Kushina changed the handseal to rooster before the vortex suddenly rose up to marvelous heights, it's rotation violent as it sprayed showers of water around a large area when the fire dragons collided with it. Due it's rotational nature, they were pulled in its motion as they began to rotate around it...all the while the water was being evaporated at a fast rate due to the unimaginable heat the dragons were producing.

"**Suiton: Senhari Supiazu** (Water Release: Thousand Needle Spears)," Kushina snapped her head to the right to find Mito holding a dragon handseal when true to the technique's name, around thousands of water spears, as sharp as needles but longer in length began to hover in midair before they flew towards Kushina at lightning speeds.

She could only close her eyes, no time to do anything else as she waited for the stinging pain.

_'This is gonna hurt like a bitch,'_ was her alarmed subconscious thought.

"**Shoton: Bunshi Hansha No Tate! **(Crystal Release: Shield of Molecular Reflection)," she heard the oh so familiar voice besides her making her eyes snap open.

_'Naruto-kun!.'_

Immediately, spikes of shining crystal pierced outwards from the surface of water to form a perfect dome around the duo.

Her heart fluttered with unexplainable happiness when she saw Naruto crouched besides her, both of his palms on the surface of water.

Lifting her head, she noticed the spears striking the defence which remained unaffected by those thousands of attacks. Naruto kept his palms on the water as the crystal dome vibrated a bit due to the assualt.

"Damn that's is one hell of a technique...it's affecting even my crystal dome," he muttered through gritted teeth as he maintained the technique while Kushina just kept looking at him.

His Rinnegan blazing with power, his expression cold while his purple eyes were fierce...it was a sight for her to take in, a light blush slowly crawling from under her collars.

Sensing that the vibration had stopped, he sighed before slowly standing up.

"Yo!," the blonde exclaimed with a silly grin on his face when Kushina suddenly hugged him tightly to her, a relieved expression on her face.

"Huh...what's wrong Kaa-san?," he asked while she just hugged him.

"Nothing...it's nothing. I just missed you...you're alright aren't you? And what about the others?," she asked while his expression grew serious.

_'No point in worrying Kaa-san when we're at such a critical stage,'_ he thought before speaking with a smile.

"Yeah...everyone's alright. Don't you worry one little bit," he said assuringly when she released him, a smile on her beautiful face which had some bruises making him frown, when they heard an explosion take place outside.

_'Mikoto's technique must have wore off,'_ she thought while Naruto released his technique. The crystals slowly fell on water, clearing their view for them to see large amount mist in front of them.

"Kaa-san...who are we dealing-", he was interrupted when Kushina suddenly pulled him down with her with amazing strength for Mito's kick to graze Naruto's blonde hair. Kushina then kicked Mito in the gut at lightning speeds, a cold serious expression on her face while Mito was sent skidding on the water to halt besides Mikoto, her form vanishing in the screen of water vapours.

Bending down a bit, she draped her arm over Naruto's chest at blurry speeds.

He only had time to look at her before she dashed in the opposite direction of where Mito & Mikoto were standing.

"Hey!," he exclaimed while she just ignored him and continued to sprint away from the two revived kunoichi.

"Kaa-san!," he again said.

"Calm down Naruto-kun, first I need to fill you in with what we're dealing with here," she spoke making him nod when she started jumping from one branch to another, before finally skidding to a halt just besides the water wall of the barrier.

"Alright," she sighed while brushing her hair behind her ear. Without giving him any chance to speak, she did three handseals before touching the glowing palm of her hand on his forehead gently.

His eyes widened as her previous memories flooded his mind.

...

...

...

"You're wearing a black bra today?," he asked out of the blue, an innocent expression on his face.

BONK!

"Baka!," she yelled with a furious blush on her face, averting her gaze while he rubbed his head.

"Hey, it's not my fault you accidently gave away your memories from this morning. Or...," a sly grin formed on his face while she just hmph-ed, still not looking at him.

"...could it be that you did it on purpose? Hmm...Kushina-chan?," he spoke wiyh a suggestive grin.

"Wh-What are you talkibg about dattebane?," she spoke with a tomato red blush dusting her cheeks.

_"If you want, I can wear a black one too, Na-ru-to-kun," _Ayumi purred with her sultry voice making him blush heavily.

_"I was just teasing Kaa-san Ayumi-chan! You just can't stop being a pervert can you?,"_ he inwardly spoke with a sigh.

_"Not when its you Naruto-kun,"_ he again blushed at hearing her sultry voice, a groan escaping his lips.

"NARUTO!."

"Huh...what?," he muttered while he could feel the memories being adjusted into his brain.

"You were spacing...just concentrate on the memories for now," she said, a light cute blush still on her cheeks. Closing his eyes, he saw her memories since the morning, like a flashback when he snapped his eyes open.

"I...I didn't know such technique even existed," he spoke in awe as he slowly narrowed his eyes.

"And to think that bastard would resort to this!," he spoke with anger when he felt Kushina's hand on his shoulder, a sad expression on her face.

"I'm sorry that you have to fight Mikoto-chan though Naruto-kun. From what I saw in your memories, she was close to you wasn't she," she said while he nodded, a sad expression on his face. He clearly remembered the last time they had met six years ago, it was his birthday.

**Flashback-Six Years Ago-October Tenth**

Little Naruto was ecstatic today, it was his birthday! And he dreaded this day at the same time. Why? Well, when you have people trying to kill you and destroy your apartment, you tend to feel this way.

Though there were a few people who apparently didn't want to kill him and actually gave him gifts. It was an amazing feeling! There were people who cared for him!

He would get one from jiji, Teuchi-oji, Ayame-nee-chan, five gifts from unknown people and finally from the one who he was waiting for inside the hokage's monument.

"Where is Mikoto-chan?," little Naruto whispered childishly, who was sitting on the steps inside the monument. His hands were on his cheeks with his elbows on his knees as he gazed at the dirt, a small smile on his face.

"Naruto-kun!," he heard someone's voice echo through the monument, an angelic voice at that. Naruto grinned brightly as he stood up enthusiastically with a jump.

"Mikoto-chan!," he yelled while running towards the source of voice. Turning round the corner, he saw her walking towards him with a smile on her beautiful face. She was wearing civilian clothes, a bright smile on her face as she opened her arms.

"Naruto-kun!," she chirped with a bright smile, her long black hair flowing behind her while the sunrays coming through the monument was making her milk creamy face glow.

Running as fast as his little legs allowed him to, he jumped into her awaiting arms with his foxy grin.

"Happy birthday!," she exclaimed while rolling him around with her, clutching him tightly while his thin arms were wrapped around her neck.

"How old are you now?," she asked while giggling as she set him down.

His face adopted a cute concentrated expression, his eyebrows scrunched up as he began to count on his little fingers.

"Hmm...seven! No wait...six! Yep! Me, six years old'ttebayo!," he said with a proud grin when Mikoto hugged him again.

"Aww...you're a big boy now aren't you Naruto-kun?," she spoke sweetly while he nodded with a proud look on his face.

"Yep, and one day...me become big hokage," he again spoke enthusiastically making her giggle.

"And me will cheer you," she replied, mimicking him while he pouted at her.

"Where's my present?," he suddenly asked with a jump in his voice while she just smiled sheepishly.

"I don't have anything right now, but tomorrow I promise I'll give you something you'll definitely like," she spoke making him pout cutely as he folded his arms over his chest while muttering 'meanie'.

"Oh c'mon, meet me here tomorrow...I'm sure you'll like your present."

He couldn't maintain the frown, not when she was smiling at him like that.

"Promise?," he asked with a smile as she nodded back making him grin at her.

"Say, let's go to Ichiraku's Naruto-kun. I'm hungry," Mikoto spoke with a smile as she stood up while Naruto frowned.

"But me hungry too! Me want ramen too!," he whined making her blink, when she burst out giggling.

"Oh Naruto-kun...of course! You can eat as many ramen as you want. I wasn't only talking about myself you know," Mikoto spoke when suddenly she found herself being dragged by an ecstatic Naruto.

"Then let's go!," the hyperactive blonde exclaimed.

"Hey calm down!," she spoke with a giggle as their laughter echoed through the hokage monument.

After that day, Naruto had not met her ever since. The next day, he had waited for several hours but couldn't find her. He had waited for another day in hopes she might come...but she didn't. It almost broke his fragile little heart when he had asked jiji about her, who had just gazed at him sadly and said that she had gone somewhere. But somehow, he could tell that the old man was lying to him. So after finally prying his ears here and there in the village, he had come to know after two weeks that she along with her whole clan except her was dead. He didn't know the specifics of the massacre nor that who was responsible for it.

The news had completely shattered his heart, he found himself crying whenever he thought about her...her smile. He had cried himself to sleep so many nights. The glares and curses of the villagers didn't affect him for sometime for he was in a state of depression, not affected by anything happening around him.

Only when did he meet Kurenai, Hana and Yugao in disguises of Benihime, Tsume and Yugi some months later was he finally able to supress those painful memories and move on. Those incidents had matured his mind greatly...it had strengthened him. But still, it left him with one wish...I thing he repeatedly thought before sleeping every night.

_'I wish I could get the present she was going to give me.'_

**Flashback End**

"Mikoto-chan...," he whispered to himself as a lone tear escaped his eyes while Kushina put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Kaa-chan, is it...is it really possible to bring her back?," he asked with hope in his eyes while Kushina kissed his cheek lightly, a smile on her face as she wiped the tear.

"Yes...it's definitely possible."

Closing his eyes, he concentrated his chakra before opening them.

"They're here," he spoke when Kushina heard two splashes.

His whole world froze as he gazed at her face, the face which was usually lighted by a sweet bright smile was devoid of any motion. The usually shiny eyes which radiated warmth, now filled with nothing but vacuum: devoid of anything. It was such an excruciating sight for him to behold.

**So the regular drill, please do tell me how you liked this one...it had plenty of action, atleast in my opinion. **

**And as usual, I'm sure you guys will have many doubts because of my frustrating habit to keep my readers in the dark. But don't worry, everything will be explained...just be patient (and that you don't jump to conclusions so soon)! And I really hope that you enjoyed this chapter. And lastly, there were several questions asked which I couldn't respond during the gap...but I'll try my best to give answers to them since I'm relatively free now. If you some doubts in this chapter, don't hesitate to ask. ^_^ **

**IMPORTANT A/N**

**So first of all, I just wanted to inform you guys that I've finally completed drawing pics of Naruto, Kushina and Ayumi (how they look in my fic and all), and before any of you ask...yes, I like drawing manga characters and other things, besides writing ofcourse.**

**The links I've already posted at the top of my profile, so check it out and tell me if you liked it. Personally, I think you would like Ayumi's pic the most...though Kushina's not bad too! ^_^**

**Another thing, for those who aren't aware...I published a NarutoxGuren one-shot a few days ago, so give that a try. I'm sure you'll like it!**

**Lastly, as requested, I'll be posting the NaruxBleach crossover first. Though I'll admit that I had the first idea prepared extremely well, but oh well...as an author, you'll have to adjust I guess.**

**So that's it for now, I hope you guys review this chapter...pleeaassee!**

**And let me scream this out please:**

**THANKS TO ALL YOU AWESOME GUYS AND GALS FOR YOUR AWESOME COMMENTS, FEEDBACKS, CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISMS AND FLAMES! (yeah, writing flames is another talent people, respect those guys...lol :))**

**So until the next update, peace my friends and keep reading! Ciao! XD**

**N6023**


	30. Fueled With Rage!

**Hello there my faithful readers! Here's a quick update with lots of action!**

**And oh, just one thing I wanted to explain is that the 'roof' on which the kages are fighting is...well, has more area as compared to the one in cannon. Which means that they've much greater space for combat inside the barrier, just wanted to clear that cause one reviewer asked me about this. Thanks a lot buddy! ^_^**

**Hope you review and enjoy this chapter!**

**Chapter-30-Fueled With Rage!**

"Kaa-chan, is it...is it really possible to bring her back?," he asked with hope in his eyes while Kushina kissed his cheek lightly, a smile on her face as she wiped the tear on his cheek.

"Yes...it's definitely possible."

Closing his eyes, he concentrated his chakra before opening them.

"They're here," he spoke when Kushina heard two splashes.

His whole world froze as he gazed at her face, the face which was usually lighted by a sweet bright smile was devoid of any emotion. The usually shiny eyes which radiated warmth, now filled with nothing but vacuum: devoid of anything. It was such an excruciating sight for him to behold.

"M-Mikoto-chan...," he whispered as his pupil zoomed out, memories of her flooding back to him as tears welled up in his eyes. It had been so long! So long since he had seen her face, he was happy and pained at the same time.

In a sense, he was thankful to Orochimaru for once...for without him using Edo tensei, reviving her wouldn't have been possible.

"Naru-kun," he wiped his eyes upon hearing Kushina's voice behind him.

"Yeah, I'm alright," he assured her as Kushina walked to stand besides him.

"So Uzumaki Mito was revived too...the first jinchuriki of Ayumi-chan right?," he asked while Kushina nodded with a grim expression on her face.

_"It's been such a long time...she looks so much younger than the last time I saw her," _Ayumi spoke quietly as few tears trickled down her cheeks upon seeing her first host, someone to whom she was deeply connected to. Naruto just remained quiet as he concentrated on the duo in front of them, feeling a little nervous as he could now feel their overwhelming amount of chakra.

_'I already know that Mikoto-chan's strong...almost as strong as Kaa-san. But Mito-san...her chakra levels are tremendous, quite possibly greater than Kaa-san's which is quite a feat,'_ he thought while clenching his fists.

_'But as per Kaa-san's memories, their attacks are predictable but they're lightning fast just like Kaa-san. Even if I can somehow see them through Rinnegan, my body still wouldn't be able to react in time,'_ he further mused while Kushina, sensing his nervousness, spoke.

"Don't worry Naru-kun...use your experience and the sixth sense you developed. Their attacks are not much difficult to read, and you can predict their movements easily," she said with a smile while Naruto nodded.

_'This should be good practice for Naru-kun. Only in real battles and life death situation will he truly gain some experience and become stronger. And besides, my clone should be finished in a while.' _

She turned her head upon hearing a splash to see Naruto discarding all his kunai and shuriken. The blonde then held his hand in a ram seal before he released the last remaining gravity seal. He nodded to her before they shunshined to some distance away from the spot.

"I'll take on Mikoto-chan," he told her making Kushina look at him in surprise.

"Are you sure?," shock evident in her voice while the blonde just nodded.

"But her substitu-"

"I'll handle her, Kushina-chan," he spoke in a serious tone as he gazed at Mikoto.

"Fine then," she sighed while he took her soft hand in his, squeezing it lightly as he rubbed his thumb over her skin. A light blush lit her cheeks as she smiled, her gaze on the duo in front of them.

"I love you Kushina-chan," he said with a smile while her heart skipped a beat...just like everytime when he said those words to her.

"I love you too," she replied as he slowly left her hand, both of their expressions getting serious when Mikoto began doing a couple of handseals while Naruto watched in awe, the speed with which her hands were moving was incredible. Even with the Rinnegan, he couldn't identify the seals she was forming.

"**Raiton: Ashi Dendō Boruto **(Lightning Release: Feet Conduction Bolt)," Mikoto muttered as lightening started to surround her before it quickly dispersed to her feet and onto the water.

Naruto and Kushina jumped just in time to avoid being electrocuted by the lightning which was coursing through water.

"Let's seperate them Kaa-san, Mikoto-chan's lightning attacks will support Mito-san's water techniques," he said when Kushina suddenly vanished to appear behind Mito who had dodged her attack while Mikoto dashed towards him.

Landing on a branch, he focused his upgraded Rinnegan on her movements.

_'I should be able to predict her movements somewhat since I have fully unlocked the second level," _he thought as he put more chakra in his eyes, her dashing form a small visible blur to him.

Seeing her building up chakra, he carefully saw the way she was moulding her chakra when the blonde recognised her technique.

_'Substitution!,'_ he exclaimed inwardly when he quickly closed his eyes.

WHOOSH!

Her punch passed by an inch from his ear as he had suddenly dodged her punch, her form appearing out of nowhere while you could see a small hand sized wood piece falling down with which she had substituted herself with.

Back flipping, he again caught her punch with his eyes still closed when she again had appeared from thin air.

"**Doton: Baindingu no Chikaku **(Earth Release: Binding Earth Crust)," his clone spoke after going through some handseals, which had suddenly puffed besides him.

His hands formed into mud when they began to contrict around Mikoto like serpents before they solified around her form.

_'How did he do that? He just closed his eyes and began dodging her kawarimi attacks...even the kage level shinobi have trouble doing that,'_ she thought with a shocked expression while Mito was standing in front of her.

Unknown to her though, there were around four shadow clones hiding around the area whom the blonde had them watching the fight from four different directions. All of them following every action of Mikoto closely with the Rinnegan, whose visions were connected to the original Naruto down there. Thus he could clearly see her attacks from all four angles, and was just barely able to dodge her.

Back to original Naruto, his eyes widened when she was suddenly replaced by...nothing? Going closer to the spherical chunk of earth he had created, he sweatdropped upon noticing a kunai laying in there.

_'Great! This is ridiculous! She'll just keep dodging my techniques then. The only way would be to surprise her,'_ he thought with a serious expression while Kushina was busy dodging Mito's attacks.

_'Even if we just have to stall them, I want to test the new Rinnegan more,'_ he further inwardly said to himself. Closing his eyes, he saw through his clones vision to see Mikoto bolting towards him.

"**Raiton: Kaminari Kangekiha **(Lightning Release: Thunder Inspiration Wave)," the Uchiha spoke monotonically as she fired off a concentrated beam of lightning towards Naruto who substituted just in time to avoid it.

_'That's the jutsu Itachi-nii taught me, I used it against Sasuke back then. Figures Mikoto-chan would know it, she must have taught it to him,'_ Naruto thought, who was standing upside down on a branch several meters away from Mikoto.

Closing his eyes, he began to concentrate his chakra as slowly a hue gathered around his hands before lightning started to form around them.

SCRRRKK!

It started to produce it's natural screeching sound, his fists covered in lightning as he kept his eyes closed.

Slowly, blue sparks started to form around his feet before they burst into full blazing flames of lightning, creating a small crater on the large branch he was standing upside down.

_'This is as far as I could progress in lightning fist, who knew this technique was so difficult to master. And I'm nowhere near the level of Raikage in this technique,'_ thought Naruto as he gazed at his crackling hands when he creating two shadow clones who had their fists and feet coated with lightening natured chakra.

Seeing the blurry form of Mikoto come towards him, he dashed towards her along with his clones before they met in their mid dash.

The original Naruto, who was in the front went for a quick punch which Mikoto easily saw coming with her Sharingan as she dodged it. Aiming her elbow at his sidehead, one of the clones caught it while the other went for a kick towards her gut which she caught with her other hand. The original Naruto quickly reared his fist before it approached her blank face.

_"Hehehe...you're so cute Naruto-kun. Surely I'll treat you to ramen!"_

His fist stopped just inches away from her face as he suddenly got a vision, that bright cheery smile on her beautiful face which his subconsciousness had momentarily imagined in place of her blank face.

His eyes were wide, his fist trembling just in front of her nose when he suddenly recieved a crushing blow to his mid section, courtesy of Mikoto's kick.

_'I...I can't hit her'_, he thought as he bent over in excruciating pain, holding his stomach while coughing a bit of blood. She quickly substituted away from him and his clones while he began falling to the ground.

"GAAHHH!", he exclaimed in pain when she suddenly blurred above his falling form to thrust a knee into his back making him descend at blundering speeds towards the water.

_'Her face...it was so beautiful, why can't I hit her?,'_ he inwardly spoke while his eyes were closed in pain.

SPLASH!

The blonde hit the dead end of his fall as he found himself laying on the tiles underneath the water.

_"Naruto-kun, are you okay?," _Ayumi's quiet but concerned voice echoed in his mind as he slowly stood up, his eyes closed when he suddenly jumped sideways, rolling at amazing speeds in mid air like a corkscrew.

**BANG!**

Mikoto's kick created a crater on the surface who had come rocketing towards Naruto from above.

_"Yeah, I've endured Kaa-san's monstrous punches and kicks, this is nothing,"_ he spoke back to Ayumi, his tone sad as he rubbed his back a bit.

_"Don't hold back Naruto-kun, cause if you do...you'll be killed in this fight. I know Mikoto and she's extremely deadly when going all out. And besides, right now she's just a mindless weapon of Orochimaru...you'll probably meet her later if Kushina is able to revive her. For now, just don't hold back please. I don't what would I do if something major happens to you,"_ she spoke quietly while he nodded sadly as he took a deep calming breath.

_'Alright, the one in front of me is NOT Mikoto-chan, she is NOT Mikoto-chan,'_ he thought while chanting to himself.

"Is this how Kaa-san felt when she was training me, when she punched me?," he muttered to himself with Mikoto was now standing in front of him. He then began to go through a long set of handseals at a fast pace as he combined wind and lightning natured chakra.

"**Ranton: Idaina Gōu Senpū **(Storm Release: Great Torrential Whirlwind Technique)!," he yelled as wind started to pick up around him while electricity started to spark through the air near him.

Slowly, the wind started to rotate with lightning coursing through it in front of him. The water too began to hover in midair before it started to rotate with the wind, supporting the electricity due to it's conducting nature.

CLANG!

Kushina and Mito's kunai collided with each other, sparks emanating from the metal when she looked up at the whirlwind, inwardly surprised that Naruto was using techniques of such scale.

Jumping back, in the process dodging Mito's kick, she skidded on the water surface when she gazed at the huge wind structure.

"That's my sochi," she spoke with a smirk.

**With Mei & A**

Meanwhile Mei and A too had surprised expressions on their faces as they stared at Naruto's technique, its gusts of winds flowing throughout the barrier.

"Who could be using such a massive technique. It's wind element, could it be Naruto?," Mei said when A grunted.

"How many times do I have to point out that it's storm element, not wind. Can't you see lightning natured chakra coursing through these winds? And yes, it's that blonde gaki alright. Darui doesn't use this type of storm element," he muttered, both of them panting a bit with bruises here and there. In front of them were the revived hokage duo with blank expressions on their faces, not a scratch on them.

"He must have used some sort of fuinjutsu to enter the barrier. It's incredible, I never would've imagined he would come this far in a month. Using a sub elemental technique bordering between A & S rank, it truly is a feat at such young age," she spoke while he nodded.

"Yeah, that boy's only what, like thirteen years old and he's battling kage kevel shinobi there," he said while rubbing his shoulder whereas Mei wiped the sweat off her forehead.

"Though I wonder when Kushina would finish that seal. It's been forever already!," he yelled in frustration while Mei just smirked at him.

"My, I thought you were itching for a fight Raikage-dono," she replied cheekily making a vein pop on his forehead.

"Shut up," he grumbled making her chuckle when her expression gradually grew serious.

_'What happened out there earlier? Several minutes ago, the seal mark was glowing red...the only thing I could deduce from it was that Naruto's life was in danger. But then it suddenly stopped glowing...like he was completely alright in a second,"_ she wondered, biting her lower lip as she gazed worriedly where Naruto was fighting.

_'Please take care Naruto,'_ she prayed when suddenly Hashirama began doing handseals while his brother dashed towards them making her sigh.

_'Even dodging these guy's techniques is a difficult task, and they don't seem to get tired too. Hurry up Kushina-san...we won't be able to hold them much longer. Though I wonder how Hokage-dono is fairing against that sanin,"_ she thought when the shodaime spoke.

"**Mokutan: Mokusei No Supaikudan no Jutsu**(Wood Release: Wooden Spikes Projectile Technique)," he spoke as branches of trees around him suddenly broke off to form sharp wooden spikes which flew towards Mei and A at high velocities.

"**Yoton: Yōgan Gomuuru **(Lava Release: Lava Rubber Wall)," she spoke after going through a few handseals before a large wall, made of rubber but blazing hot like lava suddenly uprooted from the tiles to cover their forms while the nidaime had stopped midway in his dash.

The wood spikes crashed into the wall which began to stretch under the force of the projectiles like a rubber. The lava nature of wall though quickly started to melt the wooden spikes before it was reduced to nothing but ash.

**With Orochimaru & Hiruzen**

"Kukuku, what's the matter sensei? You seem out of breath," Orochimaru spoke while true to his words, Hiruzen, who was standing several meters away from the sanin was panting a bit. They were standing in an open area which was surrounded by large trees reaching to the top of the barrier.

"Don't tell me this is all the stamina you've got. But who can blame you, you're getting old after all. You don't have the level of chakra reserves you once possessed when you were in your prime. It's so sad," mocked the snake sanin with a smirk while Hiruzen was gritting his teeth.

True, he couldn't deny that he was getting old and his stamina was nowhere it used to be.

_"Hiruzen, I don't think you can beat him right now. Even I'm starting to get hurt by his kusanagi, why don't you retreat for a while. All you have to do is stall for time after all,"_ Enma spoke while the old hokage, who had several bruises along with some gashes on his body, gripped the staff tighter.

He was getting tired and he knew it, his chakra levels were low too. And although Kushina had stated that he just had to stall for time, he couldn't let this opportunity slip.

_"No Enma, I can't. This is all my fault, if I hadn't let Orochimaru run away from the village that day, all of this wouldn't have happened. I have to kill him, even if I get myself killed in the process,"_ he stated with a hardened expression while Orochimaru who was standing some meters away had Kusanagi in his hands.

**With Naruto & Kushina**

"Did it hit her?," Naruto asked to himself as he stood on water, most part of the trees around him decimated to only their trunks.

Closing his eyes, he concentrated on his clones vision to find Mikoto, he knew she would just regenerate after all when suddenly Kushina skidded besides him after apparently blocking one of Mito's chakra kicks.

"Naru-kun, what are you doing? Keep your eyes open," Kushina spoke with a frown while the blonde just kept his eyes closed.

"I am seeing Kaa-san," he said with a smirk as he continued to search for Mikoto while Kushina frowned deeply.

"Naruto, this is no time for pranks," she said seriously without using any honorific she generally uses to show her affection for him.

"And this isn't any prank Kushina-chan. It's an ability I unlocked with the second level of Rinnegan," he explained when she deadpanned.

"The ability to see through closed eyes?," making him sweatdrop.

"No, actually I can see what my clones can see. You see, I have several of my clones around the perimeter of this area watching Mikoto-chan and Mito-san closely. So right now, I'm looking for Mikoto-chan," he muttered as he scrunched his eyebrows in concentration.

Kushina though had a shell-shocked expression on her face. Just how easily he had said that, it was such an astounding ability! Something which could prove to be a huge advantage in a fight, even if you were an underdog.

"Y-You're kidding me right?," she asked making him sigh.

"No, I'm dead serious. For example,...," he trailed to turn away from her, his back facing her.

"You're cleavage's visible. You better pull that zipper up," he said with his eyes still closed, tightening his jaw as he barely held in his laughter.

Kushina's face though immediately grew tomato red as she quickly pulled the zipper.

"Ero-baka," she muttered with a flushed face while Ayumi was rolling in laughter inside his mindscape.

"Ah...there she is! Her body is regenerating right now and, wow! It tore two of her limbs and most of her body," he spoke with an awed expression on his face while on the inside, he was repeatedly teling himself that this was not Mikoto.

"Yeah, it was a pretty destructive technique. I wonder though, why didn't she substituted to dodge it?," Kushina said with a confused expression while he opened his purple eyes.

"She did, but the technique was too large to avoid completely. Add to the fact that I steered the vortex where she had substituted," he said making her eyes widen in surprise.

"Surprised? I myself am, the chakra control I recieved was tremendous after the upgrade," he spoke making her smile when suddenly her eyes widened.

"My clone has finished the seals. She's coming here!," Kushina spoke as a grin formed on his face making Naruto smile back while he created more shadow clones who immediately jumped in different directions.

"What are you doing?," she asked as they both stood up upon noticing Mikoto and Mito jump to stand in front of them.

"I sent them to check up on Mei, A-san and jiji," he stated making her nod.

_'Just a little more, and we can finally revive you Mikoto-chan, and Mito-san, Shodaime-jiji & Nidaimi-jiji too,'_ Naruto thought with his lips curling upwards a bit.

"Kaa-san, how do we apply those seals on these two and the shodaime & nidaime. Surely they just wouldn't stand and let us do that," Naruto spoke as they both kept their eyes on the duo in front of them who suddenly dashed towards them.

Kushina crouched a little bit to prepare herself when she noticed Naruto standing in a relaxed pose, his arm outstretched towards the incoming duo.

"**Shinra Tensei**," he muttered calmly when immediately Mito and Mikoto were sent flying in the opposite direction at thundering speeds as they crashed through several large trees, creating holes in them to finally disappear from Kushina's sight.

The fiery red head had her jaw on the ground as she gazed at the wood decimation that had followed their flying forms.

"That's a look on your face I rarely see Kaa-san," spoke Naruto with a smirk while Kushina turned her head, asking the obvious question through her wide eyes.

"Yeah, the magical work of increased chakra control. My gravity techniques are much more effective than before, and the time limit seems to have been decreased," he said with a shrug while she composed herself, a sigh escaping her lips.

"Damn I wish I could do that, just point your hand, shinra tensei and WHAM...they wish they'd died by free fall instead," she said with a dramatic expression making him chuckle.

_"Yep, the prank gene pool of you two surely is unpredictable,"_ Ayumi spoke after face palming herself, sighing loudly at the antics of her sister-like figure.

"Hey it's done!," they heard a voice and turned their heads to see Kushina's clone dashing towards them before she skidded to a halt comically just besides them; in the process splashing water on the duo.

Naruto and Kushina gave her 'WTF' look, their hair now as it stuck to their faces.

"Ehehehe...," she laughed in embarrassment, a light blush on her cheeks as she scratched the back of her head.

"Gomenasai...I was just too excited," she chirped with a bright smile whereas Kushina just rubbed her temples.

"Your shadow clones too?," Naruto spoke with an incredulous expression while Kushina had a flushed expression on her face as she averted her gaze in embarrassment.

"Oh, Naru-kun! You're here too!," the clone exclaimed with joy before jumping towards him, crushing him in a tight hug as she grinned brightly.

"Yeah...so nice of you to notice me," he choked out while Kushina's eyebrows were twitching as she watched her clone's actions.

"Oooh, did you miss me Naru-kun?," she cooed with a cute pouty expression on her face, her arms tightly wrapped around his neck while her D-cups were squished tightly with his chest, resulting in the formation of a furious blush on his face.

"Y-Yeah. B-But...I'm choking," he said while his face was blue when suddenly the clone released him.

"Oh I'm so sorry dattebane!," she said as he struggled to regain his breath.

"N-No problem," he finally spoke with a smile as she smiled back brightly.

"You're so kawaiii!," she squealed before suddenly leaning in and kissing his cheek making him blush while Kushina's face was red too, due to different reasons of course.

"GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!," she screamed while using the infamous big head no jutsu, making Naruto's and the clone's hair flow back comically.

"Meanie!," the clone pouted, sticking her tongue out before she dispelled herself. Naruto just chose to remain quiet though, for he knew about the fiery temper of Kushina.

_'Bloody Habanero my ass, she looks like one freaky shinigami,'_ he thought when he heard another voice.

_'A very sexy shinigami at that,'_ his inner pervert, which rarely came out spoke making the blonde blush as he pushed those carnal thoughts aside. Zooming out of his mind ramblings, he noticed her examining the seals.

They were only the size of a hand, the black seal markings so small that he had trouble identifying the types of seals used.

"It'a compressed seal right?," Naruto said more as a statement before she answered.

"Hai, the original seal was too big to carry around so the clone used a size compression seal to make it small. It's almost like a nano caligraphy if you see it this way," she spoke with a serious expression.

"So how do we apply these seals?," the whiskered blonde asked when she gave one to him, pocketing the remaining four.

"Just the way Orochimaru embedded those seals into them. We have to push these seal parchments to the back of their heads it seems. It's going to be a bit difficult, but you should be able to do it," she spoke with a smile while he smirked back, his body brimming with confidence.

"They sure are taking their time," Naruto wondered while Kushina nodded, her sharingan active as she concentrated on her surroundings.

"Hey Kaa-san, you might wanna conserve your chakra instead of using more water techniques," he spoke while gazing at the water below their feet, the Rinnegan activated.

"Huh, what are you talking about?," Kushina asked in confusion making Naruto look back at her oddly.

"I said yo-," he suddenly stopped as they both simultaneously came to a realisation.

None of the Uzumaki duo was using any water techniques!

Just as they were about to jump away, two water tendrils wrapped around Naruto's legs while two hands shot out to grab Kushina's legs.

"What the...," just as Naruto was about to do any handseals, the tendrils rose quickly to tightly wrap around him as he struggled to break free.

A figure suddenly jumped from the water to place a kunai against Kushina's neck, revealing it to be Mito as immediately chakra chains wrapped painfully around Kushina's body, making her grit her teeth. Moulding her chakra without any handseals, Kushina prepared for a water jutsu when she stopped midway upon hearing Mikoto's attack.

"**Raiton: Ashi Dendō Boruto **(Lightning Release: Feet Conduction Bolt)," the Uchiha muttered as electricity passed from her feet to spread through the water.

"Aarrghrghhh!," Naruto growled in pain through gritted teeth with Kushina too holding in her screams as electricity coursed through their bodies.

_'Can't do any water techniques,'_ Kushina stated to herself when she activated the Ushio curse seal by concentrating her chakra on it.

It started to glow red when she closed her eyes, enduring the pain coursing through her body.

Slowly, youki started to seep from her while her nails started to lengthen**.**

Naruto cocked his head to the side, his eyes glazed over in immense pain when he sensed youki besides him.

Her bruises started to heal at tremendous rates while her hair began to hover in midair, a thin long slit in her sharingan activated eyes as her features became more feral with each passing second.

"**Grrrhhhh**," she growled when Mito began to go through handseals.

"**Gripped Chain Spi-**,"

"**RWAAARRHHGHHH!**"

**CLANG!**

Her demonic scream echoed throughout the area as she broke the chakra chains with only brute physical strength, her youki exploding outwards which made Mito, Mikoto and Naruto fly in different directions.

Naruto sailed through the air, his body temporarily stunned due to the lightning attack as he tried to flip himself.

_'Shit! I can't move,'_ he thought with gritted teeth, his body on a collision course with a large tree. His eyes though widened when he found himself being grabbed, turning his head down, he was flabbergasted to see a large hand of youki holding his body.

Following the long appendage, his eyes further widened when he saw it coming out of Kushina's outstretched hand.

Pulling the youki back, Naruto came flying towards her as the youki slowly receded back into the Ushio seal.

SPLASH!

They both skidded onto the water, Kushina's arms wrapped around him for she had caught his incoming form.

"Phew, are you alright Naru-kun?," she asked while wiping the sweat off her brow.

"How did you do that?," he half asked, half yelled with an expression of awe on his face while Kushina blinked at his question.

"I'll tell you later, but now...we've got to hurry," she spoke with a sense of urgency in her voice. Releasing him, she continued...

"Look, they were injured because of their crash and are now regenerating. We have to apply the seals quickly!," she spoke making his eyes widen. Just when she was about to dash towards them, he caught her wrist.

"What!," she almost yelled at him.

"**Bansho Tenin**,", her eyes widened when she saw him release her hand to outstretch both of his arms towards the respective directions of Mito and Mikoto.

Due to his upgraded chakra control, the effect was immediate as the two revived kunoichi; who were embedded into large branches hovered towards him at high velocities. Kushina could see both of them healing at fast rates.

Taking out the seal, she dashed towards the approaching duo. Her sharingan active, only a meter away from them, showing amazing reflexes; she applied chakra to the seal before pressing it to the back of Mito's head.

It glowed blue a bit before it was absorbed into her head.

Just meters away from him, the blonde took out his own seal before he applied chakra to it and pressed it to Mikoto's back hea. He caught her falling form while Kushina had caught Mito.

Both of their eyes fluttered a bit while the usual shine in them returned, their faces no longer blank now.

"K-Kushina-chan," Mito muttered slowly, her voice weak before blackness overtook her vision as she fell unconscious in Kushina's arms who was smiling at her.

"Mito-sama," she muttered with a smile.

Meanwhile, Naruto's heart was thumping in his chest as he gazed at Mikoto's face. Her eyes slowly returned to their normal onyx eyes.

He watched frozen, moisture gathering in his eyes as he stared at her.

"N-Naru-chan," she mumbled with hazy eyes as a warm tear dropped on her cheek.

"Mi-Mikoto-chan," he was barely able to choke it out as he held in his tears. It had been so many years! Six years and here she was in his arms. Her face, her eyes...those black eyes; it was such a beautiful sight.

Mikoto though promptly fell unconscious just like Mito, her eyes now closed while her face somehow...strangely held a peaceful expression.

"Naru-kun," Kushina spoke softly, a sad smile on her face while her clone was carrying Mito bridal style.

"Yeah, I'm fine! Let's go Kaa-san," he said while quickly wiping his tears when his shadow clone puffed besides him to carry Mikoto.

"Come here sochi," she spoke tenderly with a smile while Mito and Mikoto were both being carried by their clones to a safe place in this artificial forest as commanded by Naruto and Kushina.

Wiping his cheeks, he slowly walked towards her as she took him in a hug.

"Don't worry Naru-kun, I'll bring her back. For now, just concentrate on the task ahead ne?," she spoke with a smile, her hand lovingly caressing his scalp.

"Heh, of course we'll bring her back. Cause if you don't, then I will. No matter what! It's my way of the shinobi after all," he spoke with a grin, his voice brimming with determination as traces of that old Naruto sparked to life in him.

_'Yeah, I was exactly like you Naru-kun,' _she thought with a smile as they seperated from the hug while a mischievous glint took birth in his purple eyes as the blonde grinned foxily.

"Come here Kushina-chan," he spoke while pulling her close to him with her waist. A dark blush overtook her face as their faces were only inches apart, a smirk on his face while she found herself lost in his eyes.

"How much time has it been since I kissed you?," he asked tightning his grip on her waist while her blush darkened.

_'Why am I blushing? We have been deeply intimate with each other, how can he still invoke these feelings in me,'_ she thought, her heart banging in her chest as she found herself under his piercing gaze.

"Um, just this morning," she spoke with quivering anticipation in her voice, her cheeks flushed while he pulled her even closer.

"Well, it's been way too long ne?," he smirked while her lips were wet due to the water, those pink juicy luscious lips...oh how he loved to exploit them, how he loved to suck them.

Leaning down, he quickly took her lips in a passionate kiss while a throaty moan escaped her. She just couldn't control herself when he touched her, when his lips touched her...it drew her wild!

He began to kiss her passionately while she wrapped her arms around him, pressing herself closer to him. Their wet lips rubbing against each other creating a slick pleasurable friction as the blonde found himself getting lost in the kiss.

Pulling back slowly, he chuckled at seeing a cute pout on her face, both of their faces flushed.

"It's best if we take care of Orochimaru first," he said with a grin as they both seperated from each.

Their expressions getting serious, they dashed towards the direction of where A and Mei were fighting.

"Hey Kaa-san, there were four persons who were revived. Then how come you had the clone prepare five seals. Also, I noticed one of them being entirely different from the other four. What are you planning to do with it?."

"You'll see Naruto-kun, that seal is definitely important," she spoke with a serious expression while he just nodded without any further questions. If she had prepared it, it must be for some reason and he trusted her blindly.

**BOOM!**

They stopped abruptly when they heard a loud explosion take place, smoke rising from the area where Mei and A were fighting.

"What happened?," Kushina muttered with wide eyes as she gazed upon the huge amount of smoke being emanated.

Naruto though closed his eyes as he began to focus on the field visions of his clones which he had sent earlier when he sighed in relief.

_'Alright, Mei and A-san don't have any life threatning injuries and they seem to be doing fine, though they look to be a bit exhausted,'_ he thought as he shifted on the vision of his other clones.

His eyes scrunched up gradually when suddenly they snapped open, a look of horror on his face.

"N-No...jiji," he muttered with wide eyes while Kushina looked at him in confusion when he suddenly dashed towards his left making her eyes wide.

"JUST SEAL THE REMAINING TWO AND COME QUICKLY!," he yelled over his shoulder leaving her standing their in shock.

"What's happening?," Kushina asked to herself when she quickly shook her head.

_'I've got to seal the shodaime and the nidaime quickly. Something big must have happened,'_ she thought to herself with a grim expression before dashing towards Mei and A.

**With Naruto**

_'Jiji...no, this can't be happening! I can still save him with my chakra,'_ thought Naruto as he sped as fast as he could, putting crazy amounts of chakra in his legs resulting in powerful and blurry jump bursts through the forest.

**With Orochimaru & Hiruzen**

"Aaarrgghhh!," Hiruzen screamed through gritted teeth as found himself impaled by the Kusanagi. He was earlier getting tired in the fight, no longer having the stamina while Orochimaru was his student and could predict his attacks, same being with Hiruzen. So ultimately, it was a battle of stamina and whose chakra would run out earlier.

Enma too was getting hurt by the blade of kusanagi and one of the Orochimaru's strikes had finally slipped in to pierce his gut, his movements and reflexes were gettong slow after all due to his exhaustion.

"Why sensei, it seems you lost this time. I'm surprised though, even at this age you were able to fight this good," a slightly panting Orochimaru spoke, who himself had several bruises on him while blood was leaking from his forehead.

"C-Curse you...O-Orochimaru," Hiruzen stuttered as he clenched his eyes in pain, kusanagi pierced through his gut completely, the blood coated by his blade.

SQUELCH!

"Aaaghh!," Hiruzen again screamed when the sanin took out the sword with a jolt, a satisfied smirk on his face as watched the old hokage's blood splattering in midair.

His form fell on the tiles, under the knee-hieght water which began to turn red due to his blood.

"Sayonara, sensei," Orochimaru said while chuckling as he cleaned the blood coated metal with the fabric of his Oto wear.

Hiruzen though, could feel his body going numb. His eyelids were getting heavy as he saw the faces of his sensei, comrades, family, students, his achievements, failures...he could feel his whole life flashing in front of him as he stood on death's doors.

_'I guess this ends my journey Tobirama-sensei, Hashirama-sensei. I'm sorry that I failed you, I'm sorry to have produced a student like Orochimaru. I wanted to do so much for Konoha. I'm sorry Naruto-kun, for ruining your childhood. I'm sorry Minato, Kushina...it was always my fault. I couldn't be a good hokage. So many apologies, so many mistakes...my life, such a waste,'_ he thought, his invisible tears mixing with the water as he prepared himself to embrace his death. The cries of Enma to stay alive were beginning to fade as he held the staff in his hands.

_'Yeah, life's a one big flashback,'_ he thought with a chuckle, creating bubbles as they rose to the surface.

"JIJI!," Orochimaru snapped his head up, his eyes widening in momentary surprise before a smirk formed on his face as he watched Naruto coming at them with blazing speeds.

"Ah, so good to see you Naruto-kun. Though I do find myself wondering as to exactly how did you entered t-"

"**SHINRA TENSEI!**"

WHAM!

The snake sanin suddenly found himself crashing through the trees at blazing speeds.

_'Such power!,'_ he thought in amazement as his tongue elongated to wrap around a thick branch. His body was still horizontal in midair due to Naruto, who was standing besides Hiruzen with his shadow clone taking him out of the water, maintaining the gravitational force on the sanin. Several more snakes came out of the insides of his arm sleeves to wrap around the branch while Naruto's were red as he continued to pour chakra into the technique.

"**HAAAAHHHHH!**," the blonde screamed as he suddenly spiked the chakra input, his red Rinnegan eyes with black slits now glowing while the force increased multiple timed. His form now covered in chakra which was a mixture of white and red.

_'Impossible!,'_ thought Orochimaru as his tongue couldn't keep the grip while the flesh of his snakes was immediately torn like it was butter before he found himself flying back at breakneck speeds.

"Jiji!," spoke Naruto alarmingly while his clone had the the old man's head in his lap.

"Hey! Wake the hell up you old geezer!," he again yelled as he started to shake Hiruzen while his eyes were still red due to Ayumi's chakra.

_"Naruto-kun calm down! You're body can't handle anymore of my chakra! The tailed beast bomb has already put much strain on you as it is! Keep your emotions in control, the seal is reacting to it and leaking my youki!," _she yelled in warning while he just ignored her.

"Hey, you can't die on me old man!," he yelled with a fierce expression, anger in his voice as he checked his pulse.

"He's alive!," Naruto spoke.

"Start applying my chakra to his wound, make sure he's with you. But take him to a safe place first!," Naruto ordered his clone, his Rinnegan red instead of the purple blue.

The clone nodded when he first picked up Hiruzen bridal style, applying the white chakra to the aged hokage, the flowing blood stopping gradually while Hiruzen's expression; which was scrunched up in pain earlier relaxed a bit. The clone jumped away from Naruto in the opposite direction of where Orochimaru had went flying.

_'That bastard! First he attacks my village and now jiji's on the verge of dying. You'll pay this time you freak, definitely!,' _Naruto as he flared the red-white chakra around him, his blonde spikes hovering in air while the flow of his trenchcoat too flew rapidly.

Ripples of water began to extend outwards when he saw Orochimaru land in front of him, that damn smirk on his pale face.

"Hmm, interesting! Rinnegan with the combination of kyuubi's chakra, let's see if you can actually do some damage this time Naruto-kun. Itachi and Kisame saved you the last time, but this time you're on your own," the sanin spoke with a cold chuckle.

His eyes though suddenly widened when Naruto's chakra spiked, the area being filled with that sense of evil and bloodlust.

BOOM!

A shockwave of pure chakra swept over the area, waves colliding with barks of the trees while Orochimaru had chakra applied beneath his feet.

"**Don't ever...**," his demonic voice came in a low tone with his spiky bangs now shadowing his eyes. His body was now covered in flamy red chakra, white chakra no longer present while now it was pure youki with three red chakra tails sprouting from his hips. The blonde's features had become feral now, quite deep this time while the air was dense with bloodlust and killer intent itself.

"**EVER...UNDERESTIMATE ME!**"

He yelled as he lifted his head, his Rinnegan blazing red with black slits while gusts of wind were flowing wildly. His anger now barely in control now, Ayumi's voice no longer reaching him as he concentrated on the one in front of him; the sole one who was responsible for all this mess.

"**You've gone too far this time! It's time someone wipes your disgusting ass from the face of this planet!**," Naruto stated while Orochimaru struggled to keep his footing, the smirk still on his face as the water waves crashed violently with the trees.

"You boy, never fail to intrigue me. Come on, let's see if you can back up such bold words," Orochimaru said with a 'bring it on' motion with his hands, that smirk still on his face while Naruto growled dangerously at him.

Slowly getting on all fours, steam rising from the water because of his burning youki while the three tails waved behind him.

Taking the first step forwards with his right hand slowly like a predator, he dashed towards Orochimaru at THUNDERING speeds, large amount of water splashing behind him while Orochimaru's eyes were widened a bit.

Already past midway, his clawed hands reared with his eyes burning full of rage, he roared menacincly.

"**I'LL CRUSH YOU!"**

**Annnd CUT! I really hope you liked this chapter cause I, for one really enjoyed writing this one. Don't know why, but I really did! **

**The next or the next to that chapter will announce the ending of invasion arc, hope you guys are enjoying this arc. I tried to make this as original as I could, without making it seem like it was unrealistic or uneeded.**

**I also want to thank all those who have reviewed me, and for their ideas. You guys play a big part in helping me to avoid one dreaded thing: writer's block.**

**And lastly, please review cause I've been getting low reviews in the last few chapters, actually last four chapters to be precise. The number of people who are putting this fic in their favourites and alerts is going inversely proportional to the reviews I'm getting. So please review readers and tell me how you're liking these chapters. It's a request. ^_^**

**Also, the next update from me would be the NarutoxBleach crossover. I'm almost sure you'll like it! **

**So till the next update, take care! Ja ne! ^_^**

**N6023**


	31. For My Precious People

**Alright guys! So here's the update :)**

**From now, I'll update this fic weekly considering I've another fic to update now. So in nutshell, the updates would be alternative.**

**Also, many have been having problems regarding Kushina's four seals. They did NOT revive Mito and Mikoto yet, her seal only managed to neutralise Orochimaru's sesls, so they are still not 'alive' yet.**

**With nothing else to say, on with the chapter! ^_^**

**Chapter-31-For My Precious People**

"You boy, never fail to intrigue me. Come on, let's see if you can back up such bold words," Orochimaru said with a 'bring it on' motion with his hands, that smirk still on his face while Naruto growled dangerously at him.

Slowly getting on all fours, steam rising from the water because of his burning youki while the three tails waved behind him.

Taking the first step forwards with his right hand slowly like a predator, he dashed towards Orochimaru at THUNDERING speeds, large amount of water splashing behind him while Orochimaru's eyes were widened a bit.

Already past midway, his clawed hands reared with his eyes burning full of rage, he roared menacincly.

"**I'LL CRUSH YOU!"**

The snake sanin stood rooted on his feet as Naruto drew near. His clawed hands just inches away from his face, the blonde suddenly jumped over Orochimaru using his momentum, making the sanin's eyes widened.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**," he spoke in his demonic voice while in midair resulting in a clone puffing just beneath him.

Using his back as a springboard, he launched himself higher towards a large tree.

"**RASENGAN!**," he exclaimed loudly as he slammed the reddish white chakra spiralling sphere into a thick bark. And at the same time of the impact, a greenish brown figure formed at the opposite side of the trunk to reveal it to be Orochimaru who quickly jumped away from the tree.

Naruto's attack though completely pierced the wood.

"**Damn it! The teme got away,"** he exclaimed angrily before taking his arm out from the bark, it's splinters flying in different directions while the damage revealed itself to be a see-through hole with the wood around it being twisted.

"I'm surprised, you were able to determine that it was an earth clone," the blonde turned his head to see Orochimaru standing on a branch, the fabric of his Oto gear at the gut was completely torn while his skin there was a little dark.

"**Your pathetic techniques wouldn't work everytime," **Naruto growled as the youki continued to flare around him.

"It's all about Rinnegan isn't it? Those eyes are doing all the work. I wonder though Naruto-kun...at what level would you have been had you not possessed the Rinnegan?," the snake sanin said in an amusing tone making the blonde growl at him.

"What would've happened if Kushina wouldn't have been alive? Wouldn't you still be the village's kucklehead, hmm mommy's boy?," he again taunted while the youki around Naruto continued to flare.

_'Yes, just a little more. A rampaging jinchuriki would be a good present for Konoha,'_ Orochimaru thought while he could practically feel the increasing amount of youki being released.

The branch on which Naruto was standing began to vibrate while the red colour of the youki started to grow darker.

"**Grrrrrllll**," a demonic growl escaped Naruto as his features started to grow deeper as another tail started to slowly sprout from his back.

"You still would've remained a loser, always beneath Sasuke-kun. Being glared and hated by all the people, it must be a painful childhood for you, ne Naruto-kun?," the sanin continued to push him over the edge, forcing the blonde to subconsciously relive those memories.

The youki grew in density as the wooden bark and branch started to crack while blood started to leak from Naruto's skin, which began to be peeled off by itself.

"**Aghgrrl...grragh**," he began gritting his teeth in pain, the youki taking toll on his body as blood began to mix up with the youki, gusts of wind flowing violently around him along with the leaves rustling loudly.

PUFF!

"That's enough Naruto."

Orochimaru's eyes widened when he saw an extremely beautiful woman standing besides Naruto, the most noticing feature being her nine tails.

Doing some handseals at an extremely fast pace, Ayumi's hand started to glow before a red kanji for 'supress' appeared on her palm which she immediately pressed onto his forehead. The effects were immediate as the youki started to recede back into him while his eyes slowly returned to their oceanic blue colour.

Orochimaru though was too shocked to do anything as he stood frozen on his spot.

_'That...is the Kyuubi? It has to be, who else would have nine tails? But the almighty Kyuubi, the strongest of the bijuu...is a woman?,'_ he thought, apparently recieving the biggest shocker of his life.

"**A-Ay**umi-chan?," his voice becoming normal, Naruto stared at Ayumi wide eyed who was looking at Orochimaru with a grim expression.

"Are you alright Naruto?," she asked with a monotone voice while the blonde slumped against the bark, a little out of breath as he wiped his forehead. Looking at his hands, he noticed that they were heavily injured, almost red but they were healing at a fast rate.

"It's a relief that I stopped you from going to the four tailed state, you were getting out of control," dhe said, her voice almost sounding like she was disappointed?

Naruto's head dropped down, eyes staring at his feet while Ayumi continued to watch Orochimaru.

_'She's disappointed with me, and has every right to do so. How could I have lost control of myself so easily? But the way he spoke, it made my blood boil. He made me relive those memories...but, it was my fault in the end,'_ he thought with a saddened expression, his hands clenched.

"Are you alright Naruto?," she asked, her voice emotionless, her eyes cold as she stood in front of him, watching the sanin carefully.

"Hai," he could only utter one word. She wasn't even calling him 'Naruto-kun' now. His head was down in shame when she spoke again.

"Can you continue to fight?," again, he wasn't used to that cold voice. She was always so warm towards him, her voice was always angelic to his ears, her smile always made his heart flutter in untold happiness. But this was not the Ayumi he was used to.

"Yes, I can go on. I still have some chakra left," he said while she nodded ever so slightly. "Are you the Kyuubi no Kitsune?," Orochimaru finally opened his gaping mouth, though his eyes were still wide in surprise.

Ayumi though, just stayed quiet as she slightly turned to Naruto making the sanin growl in anger.

"I'm going back," she spoke with a hardened expression on her face.

Just when she was about to puff back, he gently grabbed her hand.

"I'm sorry," he muttered quietly when she spoke after turning her face towards Orochimaru.

"We'll talk later Naruto."

PUFF!

Getting off the bark, he released a sigh before steeling his resolve. Activating the Rinnegan, he glared at Orochimaru who still couldn't believe what he saw.

_'Damn her! She ruined my plan. But it seems that both of them are on good terms with one another. It's pretty rare, a jinchuriki so young befriending the beast inside of him. I never would've guessed the possibility of bijuu possessing human forms though,'_ he thought as he stared back at Naruto, both of waiting for one of them to attack.

_'Fighting sensei really took a toll on me. I can't believe that old bone could still fight this good. I'm low on chakra right now, I'll just keep messing with the kyuubi brat till those four finish their work.'_

**Konoha: West Gate**

**"Tchh, this was easy. Were these the Iwa nins you guys couldn't handle?," **Tianlong asked after apparently blasting out another lightning ball from his mouth. Currently he was standing amongst the destruction that had taken place around the west gate, the walls now almost completely destroyed. Besides him were the remaining Konoha nin, composing of Yamanaka, Akimichi, Nara, Hyuuga and the Inuzuka clan memers among them; who had survived the onslaught. There were large chunks of concrete, craters and dead bodies from both the sides everywhere. It truly was a devastating battle and not a sight for the weak hearted people.

"Um...yes. But we are really grateful for your help dragon-sama," said one of the leaf jounins as now the battle seemed to be over.

After the reinforcements from the respective clans had arrived, it had gotten much easier for them to push these Oto, Suna and Iwa shinobi, with the help of strange dragon summoning of course. His strong lightning attacks were easily rendering their earth elemental ones useless.

"**It was nothing. You should thank the one who summoned me**," it said as they kept guard on the area, not yet lowering their defences.

"Who was your summoner dragon-san?," Ibiki asked after landing on a roof in front of Tianlong with a raised eyebrow. A dragon capable of emitting blazing fire from his mouth and a water one (from Kushina)he had heard of, but had never seen a lightning one before.

"**Uzumaki Naruto**," he said in a gruff voice making everyone's eyes widen there.

"That demon?," a random jounin yelled before he was glared by several other jounins. After apparently Kushina had addressed the village about Naruto, the population had been divided into groups: the demon haters and the hero worshippers. Naruto had won the heart of most of the young generation combined with almost half of the village's military force, but there were still plenty of them who hated him for his very existence while some just remained neutral towards him. And let's just say Ibiki considered Naruto as a hero along with most of the main clans of Konoha.

"**You'd like to repeat that you puny human?**," Tianlong growled as lightning started to crack around his three clawed hand making the jounin almost piss his pants in front of the intimidating creature.

"My sincerest apologies dragon-san. It seems there are still some idiots left in this village who still hate the boy," Ibiki immediately apologised after glaring at the jounin, promising him sweet torture if he didn't shut his mouth.

"**You're lucky punk. And my name's Tianlong, a lightening type dragon**," he said as the others present around him made sure to remember it's name**.**

"You mean to say that there are other type of dragons? I heard of water dragons regarding Kushina-sama, but there are others too?," Asuma asked with a shocked expression while Ibiki too was curious.

"**Yes, there are. We belong to the elemental dragons summoning contract, meaning all the five elemental ones are there," **he said with a smirk, taking pride in his species while others had their jaws dropped.

"All five ones are present?," Ibiki asked, as if not sure he had heard the dragon right.

"**Yes, but we only allow the Uzumaki clan members to summon us. And you never know, you may find a sub elemental dragon too."**

_'Damn, that is one hell of a contract,'_ Asuma thought with a smirk while smoking.

"So does that mean Naruto-kun can summon all the basic elemental dragons due to his Rinnegan?," a Yamanaka asked as Tianlong flapped his wings a bit.

"**That's something I can't reveal. You have to ask him yourself, it depends on him if he wants to tell you. Now, I think my work has finished here, so I must take my leave**," it said while the others nodded.

"Thanks for your help again Tianlong-san," Asuma said before the dragon disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The jounins though began to murmur between themselves.

"Did you hear that, your demon saved your ass today, ahahaha!."

"Shut up!"

"That kid's really strong. I got news that there were other dragons on the other three gates too."

"_'squeal' _Naruto-kun is so cool!"

_'Uzumaki Naruto, soon you'll know how irritating fangirls are,'_ Ibiki thought with a chuckle.

**Konoha: South Gate**

"It's finally over!," Kiyohime exclaimed, a little out of breath.

"Hn, such weakness!," Koryuu exclaimed while he himself seemed to be panting.

Around them, was the aftermath of destructive battle that had taken place in the area. The front gate was completely destroyed with the walls barely holding up.

"I wonder how Naruto-sama is doing?," she wondered, her voice concerned when a random jounin came to them.

"We are really grateful that you summons helped us," he spoke while bowing to them.

"Oh, it's no problem! Though you should thank Naruto-sama for he was the one who had summoned us in the first place," she replied cheerfully while the jounin's eyes widened.

"You mean Uzumaki Naruto?"

"Yep!" she exclaimed with what seemed to be a grin while a smile formed on the jounin's face.

"I see, I'll be sure to thank him," he said when they heard a stoic voice.

"Our work is done here. I think we should leave, Mizuchi-sama along with others have already returned," a dragon wearing black shades spoke which twinkled at the end of his speech, making him look hilariously mysterious.

The jounin though almost burst out laughing at the dragon's strange fashion sense. The other dragons though nodded before they began to vanish in puffs of smoke while the jounin returned to his current orders.

"Let's go Kiyohime," Koryuu spoke when the cute female dragon replied quietly.

"You go ahead, I want to check on Naruto-sama first," making him sigh...yes, the dragon sighed.

"Alright, but don't get clumsy and die you baka," he said nonchalantly before puffing back while she had what seemed to be a pout on her face.

**Konoha: North Gate**

"**I'm outta here Jiraiya**."

"Thanks for the help Gamabunta!," Jiraiya exclaimed as he jumped off the toad's back while the toad boss summon grunted before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

_'I hope you're doing well gaki,'_ the toad sanin thought with a grim expression for he had sensed the spike in Naruto's chakra several minutes ago.

After checking that everything was under control, Jiraiya made to dash towards the stadium.

**Konoha: Just Outside the Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

"Can't we break through this?," Kurenai questioned the Anbu who were standing alongside her, Yugao and Hana.

"No, so far only Kushina-sama and Naruto-kun have been able to pass through this barrier," one of them said making them sigh.

"It doesn't help that the water wall is blocking our view," Yugao stated as she folded her arms under her breasts.

"I guess we have no choice but to wait for this barrier to go down," muttered Hana making her nod.

"I wonder though how Naruto-kun is faring? He is facing a kage level shinobi in there," the kenjutsu mistress said when Kurenai spoke with a smile.

"Oh he will be fine. I have faith in his abilities. Kushina-nee is in there too remember? She will die before anything happens to Naruto-kun."

"Kurenai-sensei!," they turned around to see Kiba, Hinata, Sakura and Ino in their midjump from another roof towards them.

"Oh, it's the rookies," Yugao muttered as they landed in front of them.

"Why are you standing here sensei?," Kiba asked when Hana spoke.

"The others are fighting in there Kiba, meaning Orochimaru, Hokage-sama, Raikage-sama, Mizukage-sama, Kushina-nee and finally Naruto-kun," she spoke with a serious expression making their eyes widen.

"Naruto's in there too?," asked Sakura with a concerned look. She had after all faced the horror that was Orochimaru in the forest of death.

"Hey Hinata-chan...think your Toyotama Byakugan can penetrate this water wall?," Kurenai asked with hope in her eyes making Hinata look at her in surprise.

"I'll try," she said with a determined look before activating the Byakugan followed by the upgraded one.

She concentrated her chakra in her eyes as she stared at the barrier while Kiba informed Kurenai that they had evacuated the civilians with the other rookies too almost finished.

"I can see!," the Hyuuga hieress exclaimed with a smile as she searched the area. Her eyes though suddenly widened in horror.

"N-Naruto-kun is fighting with Orochimaru I think, and it seems that Hokage-sama is barely just alive," she spoke with her hand over her mouth, the others eyes were widened while their faces were pale.

"You mean to say that Naruto is fighting that monster alone?," Sakura said terrorized, her eyes widened while Ino too was now worried. Naruto was strong, but clearly he was nowhere near a sanin's level.

"But it seems that Orochimaru is low on chakra," she said making them breath a sigh of relief, atleast he was fighting a weakened Orochimaru.

"It seems Hokage-sama had already made that snake tired," Kurenai pondered.

"Though Naruto is low on chakra too."

THUD!

And they face vaulted anime style.

"Hinata-chan, you should've told us that earlier," Kurenai muttered while rubbing her red face making the girl smile sheepishly before she turned her head back towards the barrier.

"Ah, there they are. It seems Kushina-sama is fighting along with Raikage-sama and Mizukage-sama. But I can't seem to recognise the two persons they are fighting though," she said making Yugao and others look at her in confusion.

"Kushina-sama just planted something on one of them, it looks like a seal," Hinata said making them nod when suddenly, much to their surprise, the water wall fell.

"What happened?," questioned Kiba as they got into defensive stances, the barrier must be going down if the water wall had vanished suddenly.

Their eyes though widened when they saw a huge forest in there, water filling the barrier while they couldn't believe their eyes.

"Kami, just what the hell happened here?," questioned Ino as they gazed at the dense foliage in front of them.

"How did this forest even get there in the first place?," Kiba asked with a shocked expression.

"That jutsu...it can't be possible!," Yugao exclaimed while Kurenai, Sakura and Hana had equally shocked expressions on their faces.

"What's so special about this forest?," Kiba asked nonchalantly making Hana sigh.

"The wood element Kiba, is said to be used only by the shodaime hokage in the history of elemental nations. But the fact he's dead doesn't match upto what we're seeing right now," Sakura explained while Kiba's mouth opened in an 'o' in realisation.

Yugao though had other thoughts going on in her head as she watched one specific Anbu carefully.

_'Tenzou...could you be the one...,' _though her thoughts trailed when he turned towards her, as if feeling her question, and shook his head very slightly.

_'Could it be that Orochimaru's experiment of inheriting the DNA of the shodaime into a foriegn host suceeded this time?'_ the kenjutsu mistress mentally wondered while others continued to gaze at the barrier, waiting for it to be released.

**Konoha: Four Corner Sealing Barrier**

Right now we see both Naruto and Orochimaru standing on the water several meters away from them, both of them low on chakra as they panted.

"My Naruto-kun, even in my weakened state...I'm surprised you were able to drag this fight until now," the snake sanin said with a smirk as he panted lightly.

_'Not to say that I don't want you to die yet. Your Rinnegan maybe of use to me somebody. It's a pity though that the curse seal failed it's purpose,'_ he thought while the blonde too seemed to be tired.

_'Using so much of Ayumi-chan's chakra took a toll on me. I'll just stall him for as long as possible and wait for others to arrive.'_

"C'mon, why ar-," Orochimaru stopped abruptly when he noticed the water wall no longer present, his eyes widening as he came to a realisation.

_'It's impossible! How could they have beaten the nidaime, no attacks would've worked on the revived ones,' _closing his eyes, he seemed to be concentrating when they suddenly snapped open.

_'The tracker seals aren't working except one! It could only mean one thing...someone has tampered with my seals,'_ he thought when the obvious answer came to him like a ton of bricks. His eyes got narrowed, his fists clenched as he gritted his teeth in anger.

"Kushina!," he growled in anger as he dashed at full speed towards where the last tracker seal was indicating the location.

"Shit!," the blonde exclaimed as he trailed after Orochimaru, pumping chakra to his feet as he jumped towards the forest. While in midair though, he signalled his clone holding Hiruzen to follow him at some distance.

_'Damn he's fast, real fast,' _the blonde thought as he jumped through the trees as fast as he could, his form only a blur to a civilian's naked eye.

_'I should've known that bitch would use her fuinjutsu!,'_ Orochimaru thought as jumped through the last tree to enter a clearing, his eyes widening when he saw both shodaime and nidaime hung over A's shoulders.

"Alright, let's go take care of-," Mei stopped in her mid speech when the sanin dropped in front of them, a few meters away while he had a pissed off expression on his face before it turned into that of a bit of confusion.

_'Why haven't they returned back to the pure world? If they were defeated somehow, they should've been disintegrated. Could it be that Kushina is trying to...,'_ his thoughts trailed, his eyes widening as he put the pieces together.

Even though Kushina had a calm, serious expression on her face, inwardly she was now panicking.

_'Shit! I've got to apply those seals, he will try to escape now,'_ she thought when suddenly Orochimaru tilted his head, a white ball of sphiralling chakra passing through thin air, where his head previously was. Grabbing a hold of the arm which followed the attack, he flipped Naruto over his shoulder.

Correcting his body balance in mid air, the blonde skidded across the water to halt besides Kushina.

"Are you okay Naru-kun?," Kushina asked but she didn't dare peel her eyes away from Orochimaru, she could see him raising the last of his remaining chakra with her Sharingan, the snake was definitely upto something. Mei though was staring at Naruto, inwardly relieved that the blonde was alright.

"H-Hai," he exclaimed while panting heavily making Kushina nod. The redhead though was really worried for him, but she forced herself to concentrate on the man standing in front of him.

_"Naruto-kun, listen carefully," _she spoke telepathically to him via the Uzushio seal, and knew she had to hurry.

_"He's upto something. The fifth seal I created is to seal his arms, atleast temporarily, long enough for me to revive them. Before he escapes, we have to apply the seal or he might deactivate the technique at a later time before I've any chance to revive them,"_ she spoke making him nod ever so slightly.

Orochimaru had a smirk on his face as he put his hands together in a 'dog' handseal, making them stiffen while Kushina had already told her plan to A and Mei, and had ordered them to stay back. She knew that the sanin was an expert in escaping, one mistake and he would leave the barrier. They only had one shot at this.

_'C'mon, what are you planning now? You're already low on chakra, what kind of attack are you planning?,' _she thought as beats of sweat rolled down the side of her face. Naruto though had his own set of thoughts going on.

_'I wonder if I'll be forced to use that seal. It's not complete, and I would be taking a huge risk...but if I'll have to do it, then I will,' _he thought while clenching his left forearm tightly.

"I don't know what you plan on doing by neutralising my seals and planting your instead. But whatever plans you may have in store, I'll be sure to ruin them, like you ruined mine!," he said with a smirk, his tone turning to that of angry as he did two other handseals; dog and tiger slowly as he built his chakra.

Kushina's eyes widened as she considered his words.

"No way...," she muttered with an expression of horror on her face while Naruto, A and Mei too had understood what he was doing.

"**Kai!**," the snake sanin exclaimed as he gritted his teeth, putting the last bits of his chakra.

_'It's a relief that I had saved some chakra just in case,'_ he thought with a smirk as he watched the shodaime turning into dust.

"Whoa!," A exclaimed making the other three turn their heads, pulling them out of their shocked frozen state. Their eyes widened upon seeing the shodaime turn into dust completely when the nidaime's body too started to crumble.

"YOU ASSHOLE!," she exclaimed loudly, an expression of rage on her face as she made to dash towards him after taking out the seal. Mei and A could only watch helpless, fuinjutsu was out of their reach and they knew that Kushina couldn't reach the sanin in time. Heck, even with A's lightning armour on, he wouldn't be able to stop him in time. The souls were leaving the bodies way too fast. Just a one step in her dash, Kushina felt her hand being grabbed.

"WHAT AR-."

_'Sorry Kaa-san.'_

**Punch!**

"Aagh!...," she exclaimed in pain when she found herself being punched hard by Naruto square in the gut, spitting some saliva while her eyes were widened in shock.

Instinctively her hands went over her stomach, while in the process her hold over the seal loosened which the blonde immediately snatched from her whereas Nidaime's body had just disintegrated completely.

Tearing off the dark blue fabric over his right forearm hastly, revealing a circular ink seal ring which was blank in the center.

_"Naruto NO!," _Ayumi screamed in alarm while he just ignored it.

Slamming Kushina's seal on it, he held it with chakra as he wiped the blood off his chin before wiping his thumb completely over his forearm, the thick line of blood passing over the seal.

"**Yamitsuki **(Absorb)," he whispered as the seal began to glow. All of this had happened in a span of two to three seconds, without any time for thinking, the blonde had just went with his instincts.

"NARUTO!," Kushina exclaimed, having easily recovered from his punch while she had an expression of teror on her face. Her eyes were widened in panic as she gazed at him, who was gritting his teeth...ofcourse he would feel pain! That seal was really devastating.

Orochimaru's eyes were widened though for different reasons.

_'What is happening? I can't mould my chakra properly,' _the sanin thought, his eyes widening when he saw a seal forming on itself on the skin of his forearm, the fabric already torn.

Kushina though was panicking, it was clear that he was in pain while Mei and A too rushed closer to him.

"AgghhhhAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!."

He screamed in pain as Kushina's seal which had spread through his arm was slowly being sucked by the blank circular seal on his arm. His ear deafning screams were even heard by the those outside the barriers.

"NARUTO!," Kushina screamed in panic, her heart clenching at the sight of him screaming in pain. Appearing at his side in a flash, she started rubbing his back as he slid to his knees, his continuous screams making tears stream down her face.

_'What do I do? The seal I created is gonna destroy his arms, why did he do that?,' _she thought, her hands trembling while her eyes were reflecting the infinite amount of fear she was feeling.

"W-What have y-you done?," her eyes widened upon hearing Orochimaru's strained voice. Snapping her head back along with Mei and Raikage, her pupil zoomed out in immense shock as she saw her seal slowing coming out of the same circular blank seal that was on Naruto's forearm.

"What is happening here? The seal is appearing on his forearm, it's like a dimensional portal connecting Naruto's and his arm," Mei said with widened eyes while A too was speechless.

_'Could this be the seal he was working on?,' _Kushina thought as she wiped her tears, pressing the blonde's head to her chest as she rubbed his back, whereas Naruto to scream.

"AAAAGHHHHHHH! WHAT ARE YOAAAAAAGGGHHH!," the snake sanin now started screaming as her seal was now almost sucked by Naruto's seal. Mei and A watched as Kushina's seal worked it's magic, steam started to arise from the sanin's arms as the skin on his arms began to turn black.

His screams echoed throughout the area while the blonde's screams slowly subsided, his arms limp by his sides while his eyes were clenched shut. Beads of sweat were pouring down as he writhed in agony while Kushina continued to comfort him. Mei too bent down and started rubbing his hand, they had to do something. There were no medics in the barrier after all.

"There there Naruto, it's gonna end. Just a little longer," the Mizukage spoke softly, trying to lift his spirits as he gritted his teeth in pain, no longer screaming while Orochimaru's screams too died down, though Kushina knew it was because of different reason; her seal had done it's work.

"C-Curse you kyuubi b-brat. I'll g-get you f-for this," Orochimaru spoke while panting, his black arms hanging limply by his side.

The sound four though, had seen what had happened. They nodded to each other before releasing the barrier as they dashed towards their master.

"Naruto, are you alright?," Kushina asked as she carressed his cheek while the pain had now stopped, only his pants echoing around them.

The circular seal though, after completely absorbing Kushina's seal had glown for a bit before it vanished from his skin, as if it had erased itself.

"K-Kaa-san...," he stuttered when Kushina grabbed his other hand and squeezed it gently.

"Y-Yes, I'm here Naru-kun," she spoke while wiping her tears of relief whereas Mei too sighed in relief, that was a really close call. The blonde had her worried there for a minute, though the way he had activated Kushina's seal on himself, the Mizukage knew that he was upto something.

_'Thank Kami! Thank Kami! Thank Kami!,'_ Kushina repeatedly thought to herself in relief as she pressed his panting form to her tightly.

"Is he okay Kushina?," A asked in a quiet tone as he gazed at Naruto. The red head though could only nod as she continued to hug him.

Opening his eyes slowly, Kushina almost kissed him with the amount of relief that flooded her, just by staring at those oceanic blue eyes she knew that there was now nothing to worry about.

Naruto, now coming to his senses closed his eyes as he promptly activated the Rinnegan. Focusing on the clone's vision that was guarding Mikoto and Mito, the blonde's expression fell a bit.

"S-So I was able to save only Mikoto-chan," he muttered as he slowly tried to stand up.

"Naruto! Don't exert yourself, your already low on chakra," Kushina said while he just stood up slowly.

For the blonde, A's respect for him sky rocketed. Just to save them, if even one, he had taken such a huge risk.

_'You are a true shinobi gaki, just like your father. He would be proud of you today,' _the Raikage thought as now Naruto was standing.

"Thanks Mei-chan," he said with a smile as he stretched his arms, making sure that he didn't get any damage from Kushina's seal. Mei though just smiled at him, a light blush on her face as she smiled back.

They turned their head upon hearing the sound of footsteps.

"R-Remember th-this you brat, I g-get you for t-this," as now the sound four were holding the snake sanin with Tayuya having her own thoughts.

_'Where's Kin-chan? I have to find her,'_ the red head thought as they supported Orochimaru.

"Naruto-kun!," everybody turned their heads to see the rookies, fire queens minus Anko along with some Anbu coming towards them.

"Let's go. We're done here," Orochimaru ordered as the group jumped towards the forest.

"TAYU-CHAN!," Tayuya's eyes widened when she heard that familiar voice. Turning her head, a smile weaved onto her face as she tried to jump in the opposite direction, to take her best friend with her.

"KIN-CH...," her eyes widened when she found an arm tightly held around her neck.

"Leave me you fucker. I have to save-," her eyes widened when Kidomaru delivered to chop to her head making her eyes roll back in her head.

"Hn, idiot! That bitch is no longer any use to us," Kidomaru spoke as he hefted Tayuya on his shoulder while the other two had gone forward with Orochimaru.

"TAYUYA-CHAN!," Kin again screamed in horror as she saw her unconscious. Naruto though had watched this event besides the others asking if he was alright.

Pointing his palm in the direction of Tayuya, he moulded the last of his usable chakra while he was already panting due to exhaustion.

"Naruto-kun, what are doing?," Hana asked when the blonde spoke.

"**Banshou Tenin**," seeing that Kidomaru was at sime distance, he had to put in some extra chakra.

"W-What?," Kidomaru exclaimed in surprise when he found Tayuya being pulled towards the Konoha-nin at amazing strength.

Not wanting to be caught, Kidomaru was forced to release Tayuya as she flew towards the group that had gathered.

Naruto could feel himself getting empty, he quickly changed the durection so that Tayuya was descending towards Kin.

_'I can't hold it anymore,'_ he thought while panting heavily, his body covered with sweat as he released the technique while Tayuya flew towards Kin due to her momentum.

"Naru-kun, don't push yourself! You're very low on chakra," Kushina spoke as he fell to his knees, taking in deep breaths while his one eye was shut.

The others were immediately by his side while the Anbu had gone after the sound four.

"Gaki, that was one hell of a move," A said with a smirk while Kurenai had grabbed his shoulders, she knew he would soon be loosing consciousness due to chakra exhaustion. Summoning all those dragons, using youki so much and fighting with two jinchurki and a sanin, even his large chakra reserves had to end...not to mention the strain on his body that was put due to Ayumi's chakra.

"Where's Hokage-sama?," Yugao asked making everyone blink. Where was their Hokage?

As if answering their questions, Naruto's clone who was carrying Hiruzen dropped in front of them. Setting the hokage down on the tiled roof, he vanished in a puff of smoke as others rushed towards the old hokage.

"Jiji...," Naruto muttered, his voice hourse as he stood up shakily.

"Naruto-kun, please don't exert yourself," Hinata spoke with concern while Ino and Sakura too were at his side, supporting his body as they hefted his arms over his shoulder.

"T-Take me to j-jiji," he stuttered, his eyes barely opened while he could feel his vision getting blurry. They nodded as they slowly walked towards the laying form of the Hokage who had again started bleeding, though Hana had immediately applied pressure to stop the blood flow.

Naruto though quickened his steps a bit when he heard someone among the group say.

"We have to call the medics, he's dying!"

"Naruto, don't push yourself. You're barely even conscious," Sakura said softly while Ino too was looking at him with concern. What had gotten into him? Orochimaru was gone now while the village's situation was pretty much under control. Why was he pushing himself now?

Kushina's eyes widened when she saw Naruto coming towards them.

"Here you go Naruto-kun," Ino said as they carefully released him while he sat tiredly in front of Hiruzen, who was barely hanging onto the single thread of life. In front of him was Hana, on the other side of Hiruzen as she continued to apply pressure on his wound.

"Kushina-nee, I don't...I don't think we can save him. His old body is not being able to hold such damage," Hana spoke in a low tone, her face saddened while Kushina too had a melancholic expression on her face. Her fists were clenched while a few tears inadvertently gathered in her violet eyes.

Everyone's face saddened, even Mei and A had depressed looks on their faces as they gazed at the pale face of sandaime hokage, who was slowly losing the battle between life and death.

Naruto though had his own thoughts going on as he slowly put both of his hands on the old man's chest, his vision now blurry as he forced himself to stay conscious through sheer willpower.

Closing his eyes, he began to take deep breaths making Hana look at him in confusion while the others were lost in their thoughts. Kin too was sitting just a little away from them, Tayuya in her lap as she gazed sadly at Naruto. She knew how much the Hokage meant to the blonde.

_'Alright, I remember that feeling. If can just find it, it was coming from deep inside me...when I truly wanted to save Anko-chan and Temari-chan. From within the deepest cores of my chakra system. I want to save him, I want to save jiji,'_ he thought as he started to remember all those grandfather-grandson moments, all those happy memories which he cherished.

"Kushina!," turning her head, the redhead noticed Jiraiya coming towards them when Kiyohime suddenly landed in front of her.

"Kushina-sama, is Naruto-sama okay?," the female dragon asked as she gazed at the sitting form of the blonde.

Jiraiya's eyes though widened when he saw Hiruzen laying there motionless, and other's sad faces told him everything.

"How?," the sanin asked in a low voice, a grim expression on his face as he clenched his fists.

"Orochimaru," Kushina spoke making the toad sanin grit his teeth.

"How's Naruto?," he asked when Kushina turned to look at his sitting form, few tears escaping her eyes. She knew how heartbroken the blonde would be to see him die, but this was common in shinobi world.

"Jiji...," she spoke before turning towards Jiraiya.

"He may have had lived the past thirteen years of his life bowing on his knees, but he died standing on his feet," she spoke making the sanin nod as he gazed at his sensei's face, remembering those times of his genin days.

"W-What's happening? Is he...glowing?," Ino pointed towards Naruto who still had his eyes closed. Eveyone snapped out of their thoughts to look at the whiskered blonde, and much to their shock; he did seemed to be glowing white.

_'I can feel it, it's spreading through my body like a wildfire,' _Naruto thought as he pulled on the feeling, his form's glow increasing with each passing second while his Rinnegan activated automatically.

"Jiraiya, do you know what's happening? Is this the work of Rinnegan?," Kushina asked as nobody dared move while the glow continued to increase to such extents that everyone had to shield their eyes from the sharp rays the white light seemed to emanating.

"I don't know! Could it be that his Rinnegan is ascending?," he spoke while shielding his eyes.

"It already did!," Kushina replied making him stumble a bit in shock.

"Ah, you've already come this far Uzumaki Naruto. Interesting, very interesting," the cloaked female spoke with a smile, who was standing on a tree a little far away from the group.

The white glow was so much bright now that nobody dared open their eyes. Everybody's eyes closed, the blonde slowly opened his eyes.

"Don't you dare die on me old man," he muttered as white chakra started to form around his hands, applying it on Hiruzen's wound.

The glow around his body though started to decrease at a slow rate while his hands began to glow brighter, alongwith Hiruzen's wound too when it started to heal at tremendous rates.

Hana though opened her eyes just a little bit, when she got the shock of her life.

_'The hell?.'_

Straight through her field of vision, the first thing she had seen were Naruto's eyes. The Rinnegan was purple alright, it had two black rings alright, she could even accept that it was glowing a bit; but not the fact that both of the rings contained three black tomoes in each one.

Naruto though was panting the whole time, the glowing chakra started to fluctuate, it's effects decreasing.

_'Just a little longer...c'mon, I wouldn't give up! It's my way of shinobi, my principal...for jiji, for my precious people!,' _he thought as he gave his all. A large burst of the special chakra gave an unearthly white blinding glow throughout the area before it died down like a flash.

It took a few minutes for the others to adjust their eyes to the current brightness, their vision hazy as they rubbed their eyes in irritation with Naruto's heavy pants echoing through the silence.

Hana was the first one to notice her surroundings as well as Naruto who was breathing in desperation, like he was chocked for minutes. His eyes were downcast as he watched the old man.

"N-Naruto-kun?," she asked with worry, the blonde was looking like he had been training for days without eating anything.

Her eyes slipping down, they widened further when she noticed Hiruzen's wound almost completely healed, though there were still some bruises there.

Lifting his wrist, she checked his pulse before her eyes widened in shock and happiness.

"How did you...?," she trailed as he just smiled at her, his eyes barely open while he seemed to be wavering.

"Heh, m-my p-precious people d-dattebayo," he muttered weakly before his form fell towards the laying Hokage, his eyes closed as he let loose himself free.

Hana though immediately grabbed him, his head pressed to her chest while the blonde found himself slowly losing consciousness.

_'Mikoto-chan...,' _was the last thought that passed his mind before he succumbed to unconsciousness.

**Now this marks the end of invasion arc (Readers sighed in relief, finally the idiot realised that Tsunade has to return too! What's with the marathon invasion dude?)**

**Also, to inform you guys, although the method of releasing Edo Tensei has been unconfirmed in the manga(it can be Kabuto's plot or something), I'm just going with that. Besides Orochimaru's version of Edo Tensei is a lot weaker than Kabuto's one.**

**And I BET most of you didn't see only Mikoto being spared, did you? Well, as my friends call me, I'm an unpredictable bastard.:) **

**IMPORTANT A/N:**** Also, if some of you haven't read 'The Burdened Deathcake', go check it out then. I'm pretty sure you'll like that one too!**

**So please review this one, thanks to those who have reviewed me and PM'ed for ideas! So until the next update, ja ne! ^_^**

**N6023**


	32. My Sexy Vixen!

**Hey there guys ^_^ **

**Thanks for reviewing and your ideas, thank you very much. And one more thing, the Juubi's eyes are not permanent in Naruto's case….atleast not now. It only appears when he's in that glow or super healing form or whatever.**

**Now on with the chapter-**

**Chapter-32-My Perverted Vixen!**

**Naruto's Mindscape: Several Hours After Naruto Lost Consciousness**

A groan escaped his lips as he groggily opened his eyes. All he could see was the open sky, bright sun rays invading the dense forest. Naruto was currently lying under the shade of a large Sakura tree, a lazy expression on his face while he continued to lie there.

'_Probably in my mindscape,'_ he mused as he put one arm behind his head, plucking strands of grass with his other hand as slowly a peaceful smile crept up his face.

He had succeeded in saving his jiji, and while he could not heal the injury completely, he knew he had saved the old man's life. His village…..no, the people of his village were mostly fine he deduced. His expression though grew sad when he came to realize the number of shinobi who died while protecting the village. So many shinobi had died just in front of him in the stadium. He knew he couldn't save them all, but it was still sad.

'_They died while protecting the village. It was a brave and a valiant effort. Wherever you guys go, which I hope is a better place, I salute you all,'_ he thought while closing his eyes, paying his respects to those who had died. He knew the funeral for them would be arranged, but wasn't sure he would be able to attend considering the condition he was in.

His expression though grew solemn when he remembered Ayumi's face, that cold look in her eyes and the way she had talked to him. It clenched his heart to even imagine the disappointed look on her face.

'_I have to find her.'_

Lazily standing up, he dusted his clothes as he turned his head to scan his surroundings.

"I see you're awake, Naruto," he cringed upon hearing that voice, that same cold voice. Turning around, he walked around the large tree to see her sitting on the opposite side with her back resting against the trunk, an emotionless expression on her face as she gazed at the sky.

"Ayumi-chan…..," he whispered, a melancholic expression on his face while she stood up slowly.

"I'm sor-"

SLAP!

The crisp sound of her palm slamming against his whiskered cheek echoed throughout the area. His face was tilted to the side, his eyes widened as he rubbed his red cheek while his mouth was open in immense surprise. His expression again turned into a sad one while his long blonde bangs covered his eyes.

Both of them continued to stand in silence. He could hear her breathing heavily; with his gaze downwards he could see her fists shaking.

"W-Who….," Ayumi growled, her voice heavy and quivering with anger.

"Who do you think you are?" she again growled while Naruto slowly lifted his head to see a pissed off expression on her face. He didn't answer as he just gazed softly into her glaring red eyes as she walked closer to him.

"I told you not to use my youki and you still did! Why?" she demanded after grabbing him roughly by his vest, her blood red eyes narrowed as she glared at Naruto while the blonde lowered his gaze.

"I was angry," he replied simply in a low tone as she tightened her hold on his vest.

"You idiot," she muttered lowly before releasing him roughly as she turned around to walk a few steps away from him.

"If some manipulative words and a dying comrade is all that takes to push you off the limits…..then it's better that you abandon your dreams Naruto," a wind blew past them as Naruto's pupil zoomed out in shock.

"W-Wh…." he stuttered in shock. How? How could she say that? Abandon his dreams?

"Ayumi-chan….what are you…." he again trailed, his voice quivering a bit when she turned around to give him a cold look.

"That's the truth Naruto. If you can't keep your emotions in check, no matter how strong you are….you'll die. If you get this much affected so as to lose control in a midst of a battle just by a couple of words, then you're simply not cut out to be a shinobi," she spoke in an icy tone. Naruto though could only clench his hands, he couldn't deny her. He had worked so hard, so much training….he did not strain his ass to hear this from Ayumi one day.

"If your enemy insulted Kushina, me or anyone else you love, what would you do? Would you be able to just ignore and continue on, not being affected by his words?" his head lowered, he knew. He knew what he would do, it would greatly anger him. Just like what happened in…..

"Just like what happened in the preliminaries. All it took for Sasuke were a few insults to Kushina, and you almost lost control there. I know it was only right to beat that runt as he had cross the line, but the concern then was that you were letting your anger guide your actions," she continued to speak while he could only nod. It was true, emotions were something he couldn't detach himself from. Even in wave, he had almost lost control there with the breaking of Haku's mask preventing a possible disaster.

"Do you know what Orochimaru was trying to achieve back there?" she asked while he continued to stay silent.

"He was deliberately manipulating you, making you angrier which he probably finds the most easiest task on the planet. Had it not been for my intervention, you would have gone on a rampage. So many people could've been injured, you could've easily killed any of your precious people. The village could've been destroyed because of you, Kushina would have been injured because of you while that old hokage surely would've died," his eyes were widened now, his fists trembling. He hadn't even realized then that the snake could've had any ulterior motive instead of just riling him up for his own sick amusement. Now that Ayumi had laid out the consequences, just thinking about them made fear constrict his heart painfully.

"Uchiha Itachi….." he snapped his head up at the mention of someone he admired, someone he looked upto and considered his older brother.

"He was ordered by the Hokage and those elders to finish off the Uchiha clan. And he did it, he killed all of them. For his village, for peace….I'm not judging his actions, neither the old Sarutobi's, but what he did was honorable and admirable. He killed his own clan, his own relatives, his own family," she spoke while walking closer to him.

"Do you know the weight of it all? To kill your own family, to sever those bonds….it's an almost impossible task Naruto. But he did it, he got over his emotions and did what was possibly best for his village," his eyes were glazed over now as he remembered the two month training his sensei had given him, so many times he had caught him spacing out.

**Flashback**

"Awesome! I did it! Hey Itachi-sensei, look over here. I did the technique!" Naruto exclaimed while waving towards Itachi, who was now sitting on a large boulder as the Uchiha gazed at the moon. Walking closer to him, he climbed on the boulder to wave his hands in front of his face….

"Hey, hel-" he stopped in his mid speech, his eyes widening as he saw the moonlight reflecting off the liquid drop on his cheek.

"A-Ah, gomen Naruto-kun. Seems like I spaced out again," Itachi suddenly spoke before quickly jumping off the boulder, wiping his eyes and cheeks in the process.

"What were you saying?"

**Flashback End**

'_He was crying. He often had tears, all that pain he contains inside him. It must be terrible,' _the blonde thought as he clenched his eyes.

"He's a true shinobi Naruto, one of the few I respect. Follow him, a student derives his way of the shinobi from his master after all," she spoke softly, now standing only inches away from him while he nodded, rubbing his thumb over his eyes as he wiped the moisture off them.

Silence ensued between the two as they stood, no one moving while Ayumi continued to gaze at him while he stared at the grass, lost in his own thoughts.

"I'm sorry," the blonde's eyes widened when she spoke suddenly. What was she talking about? He should be the one to say it. Lifting his head, there was a sad expression on her face as she stared at him in the eyes. Biting his lip, Naruto clenched his eyes shut as he furiously shook his head.

"N-No, there's nothing for you to be sorry about! I'm really grateful to you," he said before suddenly taking her in a tight hug, surprising her before she hugged him back.

"Naruto-kun….." his heart leaped at hearing her calling him like that. He pulled her closer, his eyes clenched as he buried his face in the crook of her neck.

"I'm really grateful to you. Thanks, although it hurt a lot, but you still wanted to help me. I guess….that slap was necessary as a wake-up call. Just because I have the Rinnegan and plenty of your youki, it doesn't means I'm anywhere near my goal. I still have plenty to learn, and you keep me on the ground Ayumi-chan. I don't know what I would've done without you. I truly am incomplete without you!" he blabbered non-stop while Ayumi's eyes were widened as she heard him yell his heart. She had expected him to respond coldly to her, stop talking to her, or just about any negative reaction possible. But this was something else, something which you rarely see in any human.

"Naruto-kun…." She again muttered with teary eyes, he just couldn't stop amazing her! Tightening her arms around him, she fondly rubbed her cheek against his shoulder with a smile.

"I love you Ayumi-chan, so much. And mark my words that I would never, ever again disappoint you. I will make you proud of me. I will train extra hard from this day," he exclaimed with determination flowing throughout his body.

"I already told you Naruto-kun, I'm already proud of you. It's just that I worry for you, sometimes you are just too reckless and someone had to take the charge. It would've been either me or Kushina, but it had to be done," the strongest bijuu spoke with her tails waving behind her when he slowly pulled back. Both gazed into each other's eyes with nothing but love, electric blue meeting warm crimson orbs.

Their faces were only inches apart as Naruto started massaging her back, a cute blush lighting her cheeks as she closed her eyes, a content sigh escaping her soft pink lips from which Naruto couldn't take his eyes off.

"No matter how many times I look at you, each time you give a new meaning to beautiful," he mumbled as if in trance while heat rushed to her cheeks making her avert her eyes.

"S-Stop saying that, it's e-embarrassing," she whispered, turning him on with her husky voice, her voluptuous breasts rising and falling with every breath as they rubbed against his chest.

"No way, you are very beautiful. And if I have to announce this to the whole world, I would gladly do so while standing on the hokage monument," he whispered as he lifted her chin, a smirk on his face.

"My my…..it looks like my ero kitsune-chan is shy today," he spoke with a chuckle making her blush darker before she pouted at him. She was not shy, it was just that in front of him, when he was teasing her like that; it made her legs melt. Her heart would start to hammer against her chest, butterflies would start dancing in her stomach while she would start feeling nervous. She didn't know why it happened, it had never happened before. But strangely she found herself excited by this, it was a good feeling and made her feel like she was at the top of the world.

"I'm not s-," Ayumi began to speak when Naruto crashed his lips on hers. She froze stiff for a moment before immediately responding as they began to hungrily kiss each other, their hands exploring each other's bodies as their tongues wrestled with each other. Naruto pulled her closer by the waist as he increased the passion, making her eyes widen while the blonde explored her moist cavern frantically, like he was addicted to it.

Being taken away by the mind blowing kiss, her knees began to buckle as she slowly slid down but Naruto didn't budge. Taking hold of her hand, he pushed her back on the grass as he continued to relentlessly attack her mouth. Both of their faces were flushed as Naruto began to nibble on her lower lip, a moan escaping her mouth as his hand began to rub her shoulders. As he worked his tongue along hers, he manipulated his mindscape as they immediately found themselves naked, rubbing against each other.

**Lemon Warning**

He began to gently caress her arms, her forearms making goose bumps all over her skin. His lungs desperate for some air, the blonde pulled back slowly as a string of saliva connected their lips now. Ayumi's eyes were glazed over as she panted from their make out session. Her cheeks were flushed while Naruto watched her chest rise and fall rhythmically with her breath.

"Damn you're beautiful….and sexy," he whispered huskily in her ear, a moan escaping her lips as she absent mindedly caressed his chest. Bringing his hand up, he began to caress her cheek affectionately, a smile on his face. Leaning down, the blonde sensually began to nibble on her earlobe earning a loud moan from her.

"I like your moans," he whispered to her, his hot breath sending shivers down her spine while she could feel her insides getting wet.

"N-Naruto-kun….," Ayumi moaned again, making his junior twitch in response while he continued to nibble on her ear whereas his hand traced circles around her belly button. Ayumi could feel herself getting wild, oh the way he touched her….it was driving her crazy. She was addicted to him, she couldn't stop asking for more.

Biting on her earlobe a bit painfully, he drew a bit of blood making her wince slightly before he started to lick the spot tantalizingly.

"Aahhh….," she moaned loudly this time, her breathing getting heavier as she squeezed his forearm gently. He was supporting himself with one arm while the other hand was gently caressing every part of her body, her smooth stomach before he began to rub her inner thighs.

"Ayumi-chan likes to be punished eh?" he spoke with a chuckle, leaning down he began to place butterfly kisses all over her face; her eyes, her forehead, her lips, her cheeks, her chin….just about anything he could find.

"You're a goddess," he murmured almost in trance like state as the blonde stared at her naked, flushed panting form with something akin to wonder as to how such a being of heavenly beauty existed , and was crazy enough to love him of all the guys in the world. Ayumi's heart though fluttered wildly upon hearing him, her wet and swollen lips (due to kissing) stretching upwards to form a heart melting smile, moisture gathering in her eyes as Naruto sensually rubbed her waist.

"D-Don't say s-such…things," she spoke in a quivering tone, her cheeks tomato red as she averted her gaze. Bending down, Naruto began to kiss her neck, nibbling on the skin while she arched her head back in pleasure.

"I will say, thousand times if I have to," he muttered as he bit on a specific spot, giving her a hickey before licking the spot with the tip of his tongue. Her nether region was dripping wet right now as she continued to pant in bliss. Usually she was the one in charge, but this time it looked like Naruto wanted to take the lead.

He then began sucking on her neck, deliberately producing chewy sounds making her moan in approval, having your ears sensitive had its perks in other areas too it seems.

"Naruto-kun….I w-want you," she moaned, her angelic voice making his member twitch in response again as it slapped against her stomach. The blonde smirked as he ignored the sexy vixen, it was time to pay her back for her perverted streak which often threw him into trouble.

Slithering above, he again caught her lips in a fierce kiss as they began to rub their lips furiously against other. His hand then treaded upwards to capture her plump voluptuous mound, just his touch there making a moan escape her lips as natural instinct caused her to retract from the kiss.

Naruto though didn't relieve her as he again captured her lips, but this time kissing her gently and affectionately as he drank in her moans while his hand began to knead her breast. Ayumi's hand lifted to caress his cheek, rubbing over his whisker marks as he groaned into their tongue wrestle making an imaginary smirk play across her lips. She knew how sensitive he was over there. Her other hand though was wrapped around his neck as she continued to sensually rub his whisker marks. Not wanting to be shown up, the whiskered blonde began to now knead her tit a little roughly; he knew that she liked it rough sometimes.

A throaty moan escaped her lips as they continued to make out with each other, their eyes closed in unimaginable euphoria as their hands roamed around each other's bodies. Wanting to pay him back, she then began to scratch his whiskers with her nails very lightly, in a tantalizing manner making him go wild this time. This time, Naruto was forced to release the kiss as he now panted, the rush of excitement being too much for him while his warm cock twitched against her sweaty stomach.

Her eyes were closed as she continued to pant, his eyes softening as he gazed at her godly form. Bending down, the blonde gave a slow lick to her left erected nipple while his right hand continued to knead her breasts. Ayumi though arched her back in pleasure, her body was burning hot right now, she couldn't believe just how much the blonde above her made her crazy. It was heaven!

"M-More….p-please N-Naruto-kun," she spoke in a raspy voice making him smirk. Happy to oblige, he leaned back this time to start licking her enticing pink nipple hungrily while his other hand started to pinch the other protruding bud, his knees rubbing against her pussy lips making her moans louder. Both of their bodies now were completely sweaty and as they rubbed slickly against each other, none of them wanting this to ever end. Eventually Naruto took her nipple in his mouth as he began to suck on it, creating suction while Ayumi gripped his blonde locks tightly, with her other hand clutching the strands of grass tightly.

"Oh N-Narutoooo-kuuun…..d-don't stop," god, how could she moan so sexily? He was sure that if he was a virgin, he surely would've cum just by hearing her moans. Leaving the pink nipple with an audible pop, he began to suck on the other one while his left hand began to roll her wet nipple, coated with saliva between his fingers. This time he began squeezing the pink appendage between his teeth lightly making Ayumi squirm beneath him in pleasure, her eyes closed while she was now panting heavily. Her one arm was above her head, clutching the grass while the other was holding on to Naruto's blonde locks.

"You know…Ayumi-chan, your tits are perfect," he began while panting, squeezing her breasts to signify while her cheeks flushed to extreme Hinata levels.

"They are soft but plump…..perfect shape….everytime it feels as if though my hands are melting in them," he spoke with a smirk when a moan escaped her lips.

"D-Don't e-embarrass…me" she muttered while gazing sideways while again an involuntary moan escaped her lips when both of his hands began to pinch her nipple.

"And they smell heavenly too, makes me want to bury my face in there all day," he spoke before bending down and sniffing her breasts, the valley of heaven while Ayumi could feel herself getting out of control. Her face was flushed crimson, butterflies doing the belle dance inside her stomach, her heart fluttering wildly….everything was happening at the same time.

"Ah, the scent of your sweat mixed up with that scent….it's truly heavenly," he continued with a smirk, licking her breast a little making her whimper. She had never got so excited in her short sex life of last month, when she had lost her virginity.

"Oh k-kami…..N-Naruto-kun," she moaned when his eyes widened as he suddenly found laying on the grass, with Ayumi on the top. She had, with surprisingly display of strength, rolled him over even in her excited state.

She immediately bent down and crashed her lips on his this time, kissing him hungrily, deliriously, with an animalistic passion while Naruto too kissed her back just as passionately. Her hands began to travel up and down his lean and muscular body, his well built chest, six packs, his biceps. Naruto could only wonder in amazement, his eyes widened as she hungrily explored the insides of his mouth, since when was she in control?

Leaning back from the heated make-out session, a string of saliva connected their lips with the blonde having a glazed over look in his eyes while Ayumi continued to pant, her hands on his chest as her tails waved behind her animatedly.

"Now…..I'm….in….c-control…..N-Naruto-koi," she spoke in a quivering voice, her insides burning with desire as she struggled to control herself and just ravish the blonde. But she first had to taste the thing bumping against her ass, she just had to….the first time she had put his cock in her mouth, and immediately knew that she was addicted to it.

Leaning down, the female bijuu began kissing his jaw, his neck while her soft & warm hands started to stroke his throbbing tool slowly. A groan slipped through the blonde's lips as he lifted his waist to get more of her hands, a smile creeping on Ayumi's face as she continued to trail kisses all over his body.

"It….feels….good, doesn't it…..Naruto-koi?," she whispered before nibbling on his ear softly, a loud throaty groan again escaping his mouth as he closed his eyes in pleasure.

"D-Damn….," he muttered through gritted teeth as she made her strokes faster, the feeling of her soft hands wrapped around his dick sending electric pleasures down his spine as he thrusted his waist upwards again. Moving down like a fox, there was a predatory smirk on her face as she stared at his eight inch meat pole, drool escaping her lips making the blonde chuckle to himself quietly.

"Itadakimasu," she mumbled involuntarily before giving his shaft a long sensual lick completely along the length of its underside.

"A-Ayumi-chan…f-fuck!" he growled in pleasure while clenching the strands of grass tightly. She then began to lick the bulbous tip of his shaft slowly, gradually increasing her pace as she continued to tease him.

"H-Hurry…up," he spoke through gritted teeth while Ayumi had a proud smile on her face as she gazed at his blissful expression.

"Hurry what….Naruto-koi?" she spoke sensually, her voice extremely erotic as she softly blew on the tip of his cock making it twitch.

"Fuck!" the blonde exclaimed in pleasure, she was driving him crazy….and always did. Always making him beg for more, damn that perverted side of hers.

"P-Please A-Ayumi-chan….," he spoke in a low tone, what else could he do?

"Ah…that's my whisker-koi," she spoke softly with a smile before slowly taking his member in her mouth, her soft moist cavern slickly covering his cock making the blonde clench his eyes tighter. Oh kami….this was heaven!

She continued to take in his length as much as she could before she relaxed her throat, trying to overcome her gag-reflex. Naruto though wasn't aware of his surroundings as he found himself lost in the youthful flames of pleasure, her warm mouth coating his junior was sending waves of pleasure coursing throughout his body.

His length now completely in her mouth, she slowly released his cock until only the head was remaining in her mouth before again taking his complete length for the wet and warm ride. Building up the rhythm, she slowly began to increase her pace while Naruto's hands began to caress her scalp. Bobbing her head up and down, she felt her heart flutter proudly at seeing the expression of bliss on his face when the bijuu began to cup his balls with her hands gently. She deliberately began to produce lewd slurping noises, working her tongue on the underside as she continued to suck his cock, all the while cupping his balls.

Naruto though could feel his sack about to burst, he could feel it while Ayumi too knew what was coming as she felt his balls tightening.

"I'm….," he trailed in between his pants when she suddenly bit on his shaft lightly, running her teeth gently on its bulbous head to give him the final push.

"I'M CUMMING!" he yelled, his pleasure meter sky rocketing as Ayumi clamped her mouth around the mid length on his shaft while he shot ropes and ropes of hot white seed, painting the insides of her mouth white.

"Mhmmmm…." Ayumi moaned throatily as she drank in his sticky cum while his dick throbbed with spasms of his white sperm, his eyes clenched due to the immense amount of pleasure he was feeling. Her eyes widened though when he continued to shoot, some of his gooey stuff escaping her lips to stream down her chin.

She released his member slowly, swallowing all the remaining cum while the blonde panted in unimaginable bliss. Slowly opening his eyes, he was met with an erotic sight of Ayumi cleaning his sperm off her chin, licking her fingers as if it was the most delicious thing in the world. He groaned as his cock stood proudly, active again in a matter of seconds, throbbing due to the display she was putting on.

"My….aren't you ready Naruto-koi," the red head vixen spoke with a sexy wink as she lightly flicked on his throbbing tool. Slowly propping himself on his elbows, he gazed at her form with nothing short of amazement.

Ayumi though blushed when she saw him staring at her with his oceanic piercing eyes, fidgeting a bit when he slowly closed the distance between them. Grabbing her shoulders gently, Naruto smiled at her, his rare true smile while she found herself enchanted by those warm blue orbs, which were filled with nothing but love and passion for her.

"I love you so much," he spoke softly while her eyes quivered due to the moisture gathering in them as she bit her lower lip, her heart igniting with unexplainable happiness as he grinned at her. Both of their bodies were sweaty now while Naruto gently pushed her onto her back, her heart beating wildly when a moan escaped her lips.

"Oh you l-liked that Ayumi-chan…..," he spoke quietly with a smile as he rubbed her wet pink pussy lips. Her breathing began to become labored when he thrusted his middle finger in her vagina, followed by the index one as he began the rhythmic motion of in and out.

"Naaa-Naaruto-koiiii….." she moaned in pleasure, her voice angelic to his ears as Ayumi squirmed under his ministrations. Her eyes were clenched shut while her hands were clutching the strands of grass tightly as she struggled to remain in control. Naruto watched mesmerized as her pussy squirted her honey juices over his hand, her insides now completely wet and lubricated as he increased his pace, watching her expression all the while.

Ayumi though, was on cloud nine as she continued to moan in extreme pleasure when she spoke while panting…..

"N-Naruto-koi….l-lick me," he smirked coyly at her, taking his fingers out of her pussy as he began to rub her pussy lips teasingly.

"I didn't hear you Ayumi-hime," he spoke making her flush because of the nickname, a moan again slipping out of her lips as he continued to tease her.

"P-Please Naruto-koi! Hurry!" she almost yelled in desperation, thrusting her drenched nether region upwards while stretching her pink pussy lips sideways with her fingers. His mouth went dry at the display of her wet insides. Without wasting any time, he latched at her needy part with a hungry vivacity, thrusting his tongue in as he licked her insides….thoroughly enjoying her taste as he lapped up her love juices.

"Aaahhhhh…." the vixen moaned loudly as she pushed his head, wanting his soft appendage to go as deeper as it could while Naruto continued to tongue fuck her.

"N-Naru….I'm…c-cumming!," Ayumi moaned loudly, her hands clutching his blonde locks a bit painfully as she arched her back while her whole body shook due to the earth shattering orgasm. Even Naruto had trouble controlling her as he held her down by her thighs, drinking up all her sex juices while her sweaty body shuddered in pleasure. Leaning his head back, Naruto watched her in wonder. Her milk creamy skin was now covered in a patina layer of sweat, her mouth open as she panted in post-coital bliss.

"I'm going in Ayumi-hime," Naruto spoke as he rubbed his throbbing member against her drenched entrance, his hands on either sides of her body as he supported himself.

"M-Make love to m-me," she spoke in between her pants as he bent down and kissed her nose affectionately, a smile on his face. Caressing her cheeks tenderly, he slowly thrusted his convulsing cock inside her completely.

"Aahhh…Naruuu…..," she moaned while arching her head back while the blonde began to move in and out of her at a slow rhythmic pace. Their moans and groans echoing throughout the area, Ayumi too began to match his thrusts as she continued to moan. Seeing her exposed neck, he began to suck on her skin while increasing his pace.

"M-More….f-faster….aahhh, Naruto-koi," her moans flaming his lust further, he increased his pace as they fucked each other wildly now, the lewd sounds of their flesh slapping against each other filling their ears.

"A-Ayumi-hime….," he groaned through gritted teeth and continued his wild thrusts, her breasts bouncing up and down at a fast pace which he began to knead roughly. Her moans now slowly turned into pleasurable screams as he continued to fuck her into oblivion.

"S-So good…..ah, hah, hah….a-amazing," she panted, her eyes closed in heavenly pleasure as he continued to ram his meat pole into her.

"W-Wait N-Naruto-koi!," she suddenly moaned, her tails holding him while he looked in confusion, a bit of frustration showing on his face.

"W-What's wrong?," he asked with a confused expression, breathing heavily while lust was coating his pupils as he stared at her. Smirking seductively at him, she slowly pushed his dick out much to his chagrin before shakily turning herself around such that her ass was sticking in mid air. The blonde blushed in embarrassment when she began to wiggle her round ass.

"C'mon…..w-what're you w-waiting…for?" she asked with again stretching her pussy lip with one hand while her other hand supported her. More blood rushed to his lower region as he immediately thrusted his meat tool in her drenched pussy. Not being patient anymore, he immediately picked up his pace as he began to fuck her doggy style while gripping her waist to support their position.

"Aaahhh yes….s-so good, I-l love y-you….s-so much," she spoke as he continued to thrust wildly, her words warming his heart immensely.

"C'mere hime," Naruto muttered as he pulled her to his chest with her arms, both of them now on their knees as he wildly fucked her from behind. He began to massage her voluptuous tits from behind, occasionally pinching her nipples as he increased his pace while both of them could feel themselves nearing their end.

"O-Oh k-kami…so g-good, it's h-heavenly," she moaned while her hands hung limply by her sides as he rubbed her breasts, biting on her side neck lightly while continuing to thrust wildly in her as she too bucked her hips backwards with his movements.

"Y-You-re b-beautiful….," he whispered before nibbling on her ear lobe, his hands busy with her breasts while Ayumi could not believe the amount of pleasure that was wreaking havoc in her nervous system. It was mind boggling, drool escaping her lips as she found herself drowned under the name that was Naruto.

"I'm a-about to cum," she moaned as he further increased his speed.

"M-Me too," the blonde replied while breathing heavily, beads of sweat rolling down both of their faces as they could feel themselves reaching their limits.

"N-Naruto-koi…..kiss me," she panted, her hair which was usually tied now completely open when Naruto grabbed her chin gently. Turning her head, he sloppily crashed his lips on hers as they began to make out wildly. Their tongues dueling deliriously with each other, he began to suck on her tongue before exploring her insides yet again.

Both of them made out feverishly while Naruto continued to massage her breasts, thrusting in her as fast as he could.

"I-I'm cshumminngggg," she moaned in between their make out session, making slurping noises when finally they leaned back to catch their breath….

"I'M CUMMIINGGG!" they both screamed loudly, simultaneously as their body shook in ripples of mind numbing orgasms, her inner walls clenching tightly around his wet shaft as he painted her inner walls white with his cock hitting her G-spot at the final thrust. Both of them slowly fell down on the soft grass, panting as they took several minutes to recover from the post-orgasm bliss they found themselves lost into.

**Lemon ENDS! **

"D-Damn…..that w-was something," Naruto spoke with a smile as he caressed her arm while her face was practically glowing with immeasurable happiness.

"I l-love you s-so much," she spoke, as if dreamily making him chuckle before he kissed her forehead lovingly.

"Yeah….and I love you so much more," he spoke with a smile as she slowly opened her eyes to offer her angelic smile.

'_Damn, what did I do to deserve you,'_ Naruto questioned himself mentally with a smile as she began to caress his cheek with her soft hands. However, his expression grew nervous when he noticed her smirking devilishly at him.

"Um…Ayumi-chan, what are you planning?" he asked with an innocent expression when she climbed on him with speeds which completely defied the concept of post-sex exhaustion.

"There's plenty of time left until you'll be awake. Let's continue whisker-koi….I'm ready!" she spoke with a perverted glee on her face while counter wise, the blonde had an expression of horror on his face.

"W-Wait, we j-just did it! O-Oi…Ayu-aahh," he groaned when she began stroking his member.

'_Save me Kaa-san!'_ he thought with anime tears on his face.

**Timeskip: 3 Days Later: Konoha's General Hospital: Midnight**

He could slowly feel himself coming back to the world of consciousness. After seeing that his body had recovered to an appropriate level, and that some of his basic chakra reserves had been restored, Ayumi had finally given him the go signal. Of course, after having sex for almost three days in his mindscape, not getting tired…..she was very happy. Her face was practically glowing, her smile so bright it could've made Gai's smile look like he was crying. But aside from…._'cough' _trying different positions and exploring the world of heightened intimacy, both of them had spent quality time together. It was the time where Naruto didn't have to worry about anything and simply enjoy himself. Who would've thought? Even while unconscious, in a way….he was still conscious.

And finally here he was, about to wake up while the first thing that invaded his senses was that damned smell of medicines….oh the hellish hospital! But then suddenly his nostrils were invaded by that familiar heavenly scent of sweet peas, refreshing his senses and just by that he knew who was sitting besides his bed.

A non audible chuckle escaped his lips as he slowly opened his eyes. Thankfully, the room was already dark….and silent. His bed was located by the window (on the left), the dim rays of the moonlight invading his room as he blinked several times.

"_Naruto-koi, how are you feeling?"_ Ayumi asked in an exuberant tone while his eyebrows twitched at hearing her excited voice.

"_Well Ayumi-hime, spending three days doing nothing but...that, and add to the fact that I'm suffering from chakra exhaustion….. not much lively,"_ he replied, a smile grazing his lips while he could practically feel her pouting at him.

"_Meanie….you enjoyed the sex just as much as I did. And we snuggled too, and the time when we played with the foxes!"_ well, there was that childish and excited personality of hers, something which she showed only around him. It was a part of her, and he felt privileged that she could be herself around him. Not even Kushina and Mito knew this side of her.

"_Yeah….I loved every second of it. Thanks Ayumi-chan,"_ he spoke with a smile.

"_W-What?,"_ yep, now he was sure that she was definitely blushing, being taken aback by the direct answer.

"_Yes, now please be quiet and let me get familiar with my surroundings,"_ he spoke sarcastically as she mumbled something incoherent before cutting the connection temporarily.

Turning his head to the right, he was not surprised to find Kushina sitting on a chair, her head laying on the bed while she was holding his hand in her sleep. The moonlight was reflecting off her fair skin, showing her beautiful face as he smiled fondly at her while gently squeezing her hand.

'_Should I wake her up? What time is it anyway?,' _he thought before shrugging. He didn't want to wake her up, really….but he was dying to see that smile on her face again. Last time, the only thing he saw was an expression of panic and fear….and he felt guilty for being the reason.

Gently nudging her hand, he tried to wake her up when she mumbled something….

"Hai…some ramen for me and my Naru-kun," a snort of laughter escaped his lips as he put his palm on his forehead. Closing his eyes, a lone tear trailed down his cheek; everything was normal now. The invasion was over now….he couldn't wait to see everybody else! Anko, Temari…oh those two had risked their lives for him, he couldn't wait to see them.

'_Mikoto-chan!'_ his eyes widened as a rush of excitement filled his body, he had saved her! Quickly wiping his cheek with his other hand, he again nudged her gently.

"Kaa-san…wake up," he spoke with a smile as he tenderly rubbed her smooth cheek. She moaned in her sleep, her eyes fluttering in a cute manner while Naruto cleared the strands of red hair from her face.

"Wha….," she mumbled groggily while sitting up on her chair, rubbing her eyes cutely while the blonde watched her with an amused expression on his face. Eventually, she opened her eyes completely to stare at him.

….

….

Both of them stared at each other…..

….

….

Getting nervous by her blank stare, he laughed kind of awkwardly before waving his hands in front of her.

"Hehehe….um, hello?" he spoke with raised eyebrows.

….

….

She still hadn't responded, it was like as if she was in a trance like state. Concluding that she may be super angry or something that he woke her up….and damn she was now scaring him.

"Y-You can sleep again if you want Kaa-san," he murmured while unconsciously slipping back on the bed when suddenly her eyes widened, as if she was thrown out of her 'no reaction' state. Her eyes began to become glossy, tears streaming down her face as she suddenly leaped at him.

"Ow!" Naruto exclaimed as he found himself being hugged tightly….very tightly.

"You're awake….I…I thought I w-was d-dreaming a-again," she spoke with her voice quivering, her bust pressed against his face as he blushed furiously, that scent of sweet peas making him sigh in content. Both of them stayed silent for a few seconds when she leaned back slowly, a smile on her face as she stared at him with nothing but love in her mesmerizing violet eyes.

Squeezing his hand lightly, Kushina leaned in to suddenly capture his lips as she began to kiss him passionately. The kiss was not wild, but passionate and full of love as she caressed his cheek. Naruto too responded in kind, kissing her with just as much passion while he began to rub her lower back wheres a few tears of happiness streamed down Kushina's cheeks.

Leaning back, he grinned at her while she ran her hand through his blonde locks lovingly as he wiped her tears tenderly. She closed her eyes, leaning into his touch while he played with the strands of her hair.

"I love your hair….Akawaii-hime," Naruto spoke with a chuckle while heat rushed to her cheeks as she averted her gaze. Leaning up, he kissed her petty nose making her blink.

"You're cute," he again complimented her as her face grew tomato red now, making him chuckle while she pouted at him. Her heart was racing now, her cheeks flushed as she looked anywhere but his eyes. Whenever he complimented her, she always felt like she was at the top of the world, it was such a warm feeling. It was embarrassing alright, and she would act so….but it really made her heart swell with love and happiness. She absolutely adored and loved the one beneath her right now.

"Kaa-san….," he spoke making her look at him when he continued.

"I know this is too early, and awkward. But, can I….can I see Mikoto-chan right now? I know she must be in the hospital," Kushina just smiled at him as she slowly stood up while still holding his hand.

"I knew you would ask for her. Think you can walk?" she asked with grin making his face burst into a bright smile as he comically jumped out of the bed.

"Sure I can! I'm Uzumaki Naruto dattebayo!" he spoke with grin when suddenly his knees buckled as he began to fall.

"Yes, you really are Uzumaki Naruto….my son dattebane," she said with a giggle after catching him, his face scarlet red in embarrassment.

"Hold on…" hefting his arm over her shoulders, she grinned at him as he nodded to her with a smile.

**Timeskip: One Minute Later (Probably the shortest one you've ever seen :))**

Grabbing the knob, Kushina slowly and gently slid the door open. Mikoto's room was just next to his, but still the blonde had difficulty in walking just after waking up.

"You should've seen her face when she saw you yesterday, her face was red. She was blushing! Can you believe that?" Kushina had whispered in their way making Naruto look at her in surprise. Well, that was new. But it was to be expected considering he had changed so much, and he was not that oblivious…..the blonde knew he was pretty good in the looks department.

And now we find both of them standing at the entrance.

Naruto's eyes were wide, his breathing being hitched in the throat while his whole world was frozen. There she was, sitting on the bed while gazing at the moon. She too, like him was wearing a plain white hospital gown, her black hair still as elegant as ever. The moonlight reflecting off her face was giving the angelic glowing effect to her porcelain skin.

"It seems she hasn't noticed us," Kushina whispered with a smirk while the blonde continued to stare at the Uchiha in front of him. Moisture now was gathering in his oceanic blue orbs, his vision getting foggy as he remained unmoved from his position.

"Let's wake her up," the red head Uzumaki again whispered with a devilish smirk as a small amount of water materialized over her hands. Manipulating it, the glob of liquid slowly hovered towards Mikoto until it was just above her head. Kushina snickered to herself when Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed what she was doing.

Splash!

**Yeah splash! Chapter's over….another cliffhanger eh? Sorry for that, I had no intention in this one…but oh well ^_^**

**Hope you liked the lemon, well I hope it was atleast better than my previous three lemons (including my other stories). Please do tell if it was good, and maybe some tips for improving in this area. I'll admit though, it was a bit embarrassing writing all that…but I'll get used to it eventually I guess. And hopefully, I can open myself completely in future lemons :)**

**Please review, and Tsunade Retrieval Arc would probably commence in the next to next chapter…or may start in the next chapter too. So until the next update, take care and ja ne! ^_^**

**N6023**


	33. Revelations!

**Hey guys! Ahehe….sorry for updating so late. I just got caught up in updating BDC and then exams came up. But updates should be regular from now on…should be weekly. And you guys don't have to worry about me abandoning any of my stories. Once I start something, I intent to finish it. :)**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter ^_^**

**Chapter-33-Revelations**

"It seems she hasn't noticed us," Kushina whispered with a smirk while the blonde continued to stare at the Uchiha in front of him. Moisture now was gathering in his oceanic blue orbs, his vision getting foggy as he remained unmoved from his position.

"Let's wake her up," the red head Uzumaki again whispered with a devilish smirk as a small amount of water materialized over her hands. Manipulating it, the glob of liquid slowly hovered towards Mikoto until it was just above her head. The red head snickered to herself when Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed what she was doing.

Splash!

"Wa-Wha...," the way her body jerked suddenly made Kushina's cheeks swell as she tried to control her laughter. Mikoto's eyes were widened in surprise, her head now completely wet while her black hair stuck to her forehead.

"Phfffft...aheh...ahm" Kushina desperately tried to control her laughter making Mikoto turn her gaze towards them.

"Kushina!" she exclaimed in anger, her eyes narrowing which got widened in shock when she noticed the person next to Kushina.

_'T-That voice...it's been so long since I've heard that voice,'_ he thought, his legs as if stuck deep into the concrete while he stood frozen there.

"M-Mikoto-chan...," he whispered as moisture gathered in his eyes, biting his lower lip to compose himself.

Mikoto though too wasn't fairing much better, her heart was racing as she stared at the blonde in front of her.

"Na-Naruto-kun...," she too whispered as if in shock while Kushina stood there supporting Naruto with a smile on her face.

"Ho...," he gulped to control himself, "How are y-you feeling M-Mikoto-chan?" his voice quivering as she sat there staring at him, droplets of water falling off her face and strands of her hair.

"I'm f-fine," she replied in a low tone as both of them gazed at each other.

"Oh come on! Is that how you're supposed to do the reunion? You guys are such a bore!" Kushina exclaimed in exasperation as she started to walk towards Mikoto, pulling Naruto with her.

"There, now say something which is not lame," the red head muttered as she made Naruto sit on the side of Mikoto's bed. The Uchiha averted her gaze as water continued to drip from her hair when Naruto suddenly leaned forward.

Mikoto's eyes widened when she found herself wrapped in a tight hug.

"I m-missed you Mi-Mikoto-chan," he mumbled as he tightened his hold while Mikoto too hugged him back.

"Not sure what to say, I was dead. So I don't know if I missed you or anybody exactly," she spoke with a smile as a few tears streamed down her wet cheeks making the blonde chuckle. Kushina though smiled while nodding to herself approvingly.

"I'm sorry f-for just leaving like that Naruto-kun," she whispered as he slowly pulled back while wiping his cheeks, his warm watery blue eyes making her blush a bit.

"N-Naw, that's alright! I'm glad I could bring you back Mikoto-chan! Oh...and there's so much I want to tell you! You wouldn't believe how much stronger I've gotten Mikoto-chan. I even have a bloodline limit! And guess what, I-"

"I'm proud of you Naruto-kun. You've gotten strong, just like you said you would. You've made others acknowledge you and at the same time, you gave it your all when protecting your loved ones," she spoke making him grin silly while Kushina giggled at his expression.

"Though you do have your moments of stupidity Naruto-kun," she spoke with a giggle making Kushina sweatdrop while the blonde's grin faded immediately.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"For example, faking your death in the middle of a war. right Kushina-chan?" Mikoto asked making Kushina's giggling fit stop abruptly, her eyes widened as if she had just remembered something.

"Oh that! Hehehe...I was just trying to lighten the mood," Naruto uttered while laughing nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Almost giving those three heart attacks in the middle of a war, YOU CALL THIS LIGHTING THE MOOD?"

"Itai ITAI!" he exclaimed as Kushina pinched his cheek tightly.

"Gomen Kaa-san," he spoke quietly, eyes teary as he rubbed his red cheek with a pout.

"Oh cut it off! And no silly pranks from now on!" she chided with a frown making his eyes widen in horror.

"WHAT! But how can you say that? You know pranking's in my blood, how can I live without that?", he exclaimed in shock while Kushina quieted down whereas Mikoto was snickering at the duo.

"Well, you're right I guess. But consider this as a last warning, either you stop those life threatening pranks or….." she paused before pulling out a large book before slamming it on the table besides Mikoto's bed.

"…..according to 'Uzumaki Prank Knowhow', section seventeenth, page twenty three, rule number one sixty seven….you will NOT prank anyone for a month. And as a personal punishment, no ramen for you! Is that understood Naruto?" she asked with an evil grin making him gulp nervously as beads of sweat rolled down the side of his face.

'_Whoa! The 'Uzumaki Prank Knowhow', the book said to have lost with the Uzumaki clan decades ago, I never knew Kaa-san had this in her possession,'_ the blonde thought while staring at the large golden book.

"I said is that clear Uzumaki Naruto?" she yelled making stand rigid like a rod.

"Yes m'am!" he shouted back with a salute as Mikoto giggled at their antics.

'_One Uzumaki was enough, but two? This is definitely something!' _she pondered with a smile while Naruto heaved a sigh when Kushina nodded before pulling the book back.

"I think you can stand now Naruto-kun," Mikoto spoke while pointing at his legs.

"Oh yeah, thanks for stating the obvious genius. I knew your sharingan was special," Kushina said while nodding with herself, mocking the Uchiha matriarch as a vein popped on Mikoto's forehead.

"The only thing obvious here is that over riped tomato head of yours," she responded calmly making Naruto's face pale as Kushina's eyebrows started twitching.

"I DARE YOU SAY THAT AGAIN!" she yelled as their faces were only inches away from each other, sparks flying as they stared lasers at each other while Naruto just watched them like a helpless spectator.

'_Hmm….let's see. Last time I tried to interfere, Ayumi-chan and Kushina-chan bounced back on me. So I'll just stay out of this and wait for them to calm down,'_ he thought while rubbing his chin.

"NARUTO! Do I look like a tomato to you?" Kushina asked as she turned her death glare to him making him sweat profusely.

'_DAMN IT! She's the one dragging me in this time!'_ he thought before laughing nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Of course n-" poor blonde stopped in his mid speech when he noticed Mikoto's 'sharingan enpowered' glare set ablaze on him, the look clearly saying 'you say that and I'll go fire style on you.'

"You were saying Naruto-kun?" she asked sweetly while batting her eyelashes cutely as he stumbled back a bit.

"Uh…um, well you see….." he sputtered trying to find something right to say.

'_Ayumi-chan help me!'_

'_Ahh yes….I'll help you release it Naruto-kun. Please cum for me….ahh,'_ his eyebrows twitched upon hearing her moans as she slept comfortably.

'_DAMN YOU AYUMI!'_

"NA-RU-TOOO!" he snapped his head as both Kushina and Mikoto called him out dangerously.

"Hey quiet down a bit will you? Y-You might disturb the other patients…..hehe…hehehe," he spoke while smiling.

…..

…..

…..

Both of their glares turned more red with his smile turning more nervous before it was nothing but a whimper.

'_Why me?' _inwardly crying anime tears.

"I think both of you….I think….I think I need to pee!" he babbled before dashing out of the room like a road runner, making a mysterious wind sweep through the room while Kushina and Mikoto blinked as they stared at the spot he was standing a second ago.

"How'd he do that?"

"Beats me, he's your son."

**Outside Mikoto's Room**

"Phew! Those two together are nothing but trouble!" he exclaimed while wiping his forehead as the blonde walked through the corridors.

"I really don't feel like going back to sleep. Guess I'll just take a walk around this place," he muttered to himself while walking through the dark corridors.

'_I still wanted to talk to Mikoto-chan. She must be extremely disturbed after having to just wake up from the dead, especially when her elder son was the one to kill her in the first place. I wonder if they have told her about Sasuke too. I don't think she'll like the way her younger son turned out. I can't believe Sasuke would join Orochimaru and try to kill me. This only means one thing that he's with the sound now. But…where is he now anyway? He was unconscious, laying onto the sand in the stadium the last time I saw him,'_ the whiskered blonde mused as he walked absent mindedly.

"Wait. Was that…." he trailed with scrunched up eyebrows as he traced back several of his footsteps. On the board hanging by the entrance door of a room was written…..

"Patients name….Mitara-" not requiring to read the name further, he silently slid open the door.

"Anko-chan….." he mumbled with his heart beating stronger as he saw her peaceful expression. The fire queen, snake mistress of Konoha was sleeping by the window as the moonlight shone on her face. Images of her broken and wounded form replayed in his head like a flashback. The hit she had taken for him, blood gushing down her mouth as she laid in his arms.

'_No…..no, she's alright now'_ he mulled with a sigh. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath to calm himself. Walking towards her, he noticed several get well cards for her along with some flowers.

"Looks like people are finally recognizing you, ne Anko-chan?" he whispered as he pulled a chair quietly before sitting by her side. Grabbing a hold of her hand, he noticed it was a little cold as he covered her hand in between both of his warm ones.

"Thank kami you're alright hebi-hime. I don't know what I would've done without you…thank kami," he whispered before kissing her palm, her hand soft as he rubbed them tenderly.

"Hehe….you look even more beautiful with your hair's undone Anko-chan," the blonde spoke quietly while chuckling to himself as he noticed her purple hair, shining under the moon. A smile crept up his face as he remembered all the times they used to fight over little things. They would always quarrel whether to eat ramen or dango while the other fire queens would laugh at them whereas surprisingly Kushina would try to calm them down. But he couldn't forget that one day…..

**Flashback- Sometime during the one month timeskip**

"We're eating DANGO and that's IT!" Anko yelled as both Naruto were up at each other's faces as they glared at each other menacingly.

"Dream on dango-chan! We're gonna go for ramen and that's my final decision!" he retorted as both of them gritted their teeth in frustration.

"Mah mah, both of you…..calm down will you? Can't we solve this matter peacefully?" Kurenai spoke while trying to calm them down.

"HELL NO!" they simultaneously yelled at her before turning back to their glaring session.

"I'd say make them spar through kenjutsu till both of them are unconscious. The winner gets to eat what they want. Right Hana-chan?" Yugao spoke in a monotone voice making the Inuzuka heiress nod with a giggle.

"HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO EAT ANYTHING IF WE'RE UNCONSCIOUS?"

"Oh they figured out. Wow….did Kakashi arrived early today?" she mumbled as both of them started to fight, a large dust cloud forming as a result. Besides them was standing Kushina, a large throbbing vein on her forehead as she saw them fighting while yelling obscenities at each other.

"BOTH OF YOU STOP OR ONLY RATION BARS FOR YOU FOR AN ENTIRE WEEK!" it was astonishing how much power dango and ramen held over both of them as they immediately stood like soldiers at attention.

"Why didn't we do that?" Yugao whispered to Kurenai making her shrug.

"Hana!" the red head exclaimed while glaring at both Anko and Naruto, both of whom were still glaring at each other.

"Hai?"

"Tie both of them around these posts!" she ordered while indicating towards the two wooden logs of the team seven's training ground, where they were standing right now while Kushina created two shadow clones.

"Hai Kushina-nee," Hana replied with a sigh.

"Hey no way!" both of them yelled simultaneously….again.

"Say that again you two," Kushina said with a sweet smile making him shut up instantly before she turned to her clones.

"Bring lots of dango and ramen as soon as possible," she ordered making them nod before they dashed away while stars lit in Naruto's and Anko's eyes.

'_JACKPOT!'_ both of them cheered mentally, giving each other smug grins while the other fire queens looked at her in confusion.

"This is outrageous! You can't do this to us!" Naruto yelled as he tried to rid himself of the ropes.

"This is torture! How can you be so cruel Kushina-nee-chan?" Anko shouted as she flailed around, desperately trying to get free as Kushina and the other fire queens ate dango and ramen in front of them.

"Oh, today's dango is extra delicious! Right Kurenai-chan?" Kushina asked as she ate slowly making Kurenai nod.

"Yeah, these are the best dumplings I've ever ate!" she replied back cheerfully.

"The ramen's not bad too mind you. It's filled with extra shrimp, meat and fishcakes today. The soup is spicy and delicious with the noodles being thin and finely crafted. Yep, this is a rare one," Yugao muttered in a monotone voice as she ate her miso ramen slowly.

"You're right Yugao-chan! It's a shame Naruto-kun can't eat ramen today of all days."

"HEY STOP THAT!" the blonde yelled as he tried to substitute himself.

"No use doing that Naru-kun. You think I'm an idiot, I've applied seals on those ropes. So save it," Kushina spoke calmly as she now started to eat ramen making the blonde almost drool at the sight as both of their stomachs growled loudly making them groan.

"Hmm….you heard something you three?" Kushina asked making them shake their heads as they were too immersed in their food.

"I thought I heard someone yell hungry," she mumbled before shrugging to herself. Both Naruto and Anko hung their heads in defeat as they cried anime tears. Both of them then lifted their heads to stare at each other, before it turned murderous.

"Yeah, keep doing that you'll get your food very sooooon," Kushina mocked as several empty bowls and sticks laid besides her making them hang their heads again in defeat.

"Alright! That really hit the spot!," Hana exclaimed as all of them stood up, on a few packs of ramen and dango remaining now which Naruto and Anko were staring at like hungry predators.

"_G-spot!"_ Ayumi exclaimed making the blonde blush heavily as he shook his head to concentrate on the food.

"So you two get your lessons then?" Kushina asked with both of her hands on her hips as she gazed sternly at them.

"What lesson? You only made us watch as you ate all the delicious ramen/dango," they replied dryly simultaneously making her sigh.

"Teamwork!" she exclaimed and somehow, Naruto had a sense of déjà vu right then. Suddenly, memories of his team's first survival exercise came flooding back to him.

"Now don't go Kakashi on me Kaa-san," he deadpanned making her eyebrows twitch while Hana snickered quietly.

"When in a team, you have to adjust to other's needs. You can't just go thinking about yourself. All you ever think about is either dango or ramen," she chided making Anko's and Naruto's eyes widen as if they had came to a realization.

'_Damn you Kakashi-sensei, you forgot to give us the lesson of 'adjustment'!'_

"And you Anko-chan, you are a jounin now! You should've known this in the first place!" Kushina exclaimed as she pointed an accusing finger at Anko making her head drop in shame as a black cloud formed over her head.

"Ehehehe….," the blonde grinned triumphantly as he stared at Anko.

"And you Mr. Ramen, for how long have you been a genin?" she yelled making him pout before he adopted a thinking pose.

"Hmm….dunno, got lost on the road of life!"

"Why you…fine!" the red head muttered in anger as her face slowly got red while Kurenai giggled quietly with Yugao smirking as Kushina walked towards Anko.

"Let's see if your 'snide remark system' remains active after Anko-chan eats in front of you," she spoke with an evil grin making him sputter.

"O-Oi, m-matte! That was my stomach rumbling…..OI! Are you even listening?"

"Now Anko-chan, be sure to eat everything in front of hjm!" Hana said, barely stifling her laughter as Kushina peeled off the seal tag before untying her.

"Ah, at last free!" she stretched her arms before giving Naruto the 'v' sign making him grumble.

"Alright girls, let's go train somewhere else while Anko finishes her meal," Kushina declared cheerfully.

"Yosh! Let's go….I want to show you another move I invented recently Kushina-nee," Hana said excitedly as the group of four left the area while chatting amongst themselves.

"Oh yummy! She really told the truth, these dumplings are awesome!" Anko spoke as she stuffed her mouth with as much dango at once as she could while Naruto stared at the food hungrily.

"_Hungry Naruto-kun?"_ Ayumi asked sensually as the blonde just nodded as if he was in a trance.

"_You can always eat me you know,"_ she replied seductively making his face light up red as a pulsing vein appeared on his forehead.

"SHUTUP YOU PERVERT!" he screamed with all his strength making Anko stop in her….eating session.

"Huh? What's wrong with you idiot?" she asked while tilting her head innocently making his eyes twitch comically.

"Stop the innocent act! You are really enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Hehe, you know me too well whisker-chan!" she replied with a grin before turning to her meal.

"Um…..Anko-chan, I'm really sorry for fighting earlier. Can you…..can you untie me?" he asked with a warm smile making her look at him.

"Stop the act blondie," she deadpanned making him sweatdrop.

"Pleeasse Anko-chan! I'm really hungry!" he whined with large shiny blue eyes, a pout on his face while there looked to be a hesitant expression on her face.

"Fine then, but let me eat first!" she exclaimed while pointing her chopsticks at him. Naruto was taken aback, he wasn't expecting her to agree. It was just to tease her…..he didn't know, but he loved teasing her.

"Y-You really would?" he stuttered making her nod as she continued to eat.

"There you go, now eat all you want," she spoke with a sigh, untying the ropes around him after taking off the seal tag.

"Arigatou Anko-chan! You are the best!" he exclaimed before hugging her tightly. Her face flushed a dark shade of red.

"O-Oi….w-what…" her breathing hitched as both of them fell on the grassy ground with him on top of her.

"Thanks!" he again exclaimed while hugging her tighter making her blush brighter.

"C-Cut it out! Just eat your ramen!" she sputtered in embarrassment, not knowing what got over him as he lifted himself to grin at her…turning her on, that grin; it always did that to her.

"Hehehe….you look beautiful," he uttered making her eyes widen as she averted her gaze, now looking cute more than ever making her irresistible. His grin faded slowly as he continued to stare at her. Putting his hand on her warm soft cheek, he smiled as she stared back at him in surprise.

"Kawai," he whispered to himself as he gazed at her features while she laid there paralysed by his stare. Her heart thumping in her chest, she found herself lost in those oceanic blue eyes…..as if staring into the endless sky.

He was just…..he was just perfect for her. She would do anything for him, she loved him.

She was just…..she was so special to him. He loved her very much, and he would do anything for her….for her dreams, to protect her from everything, everyone.

"Naru-kun…..," she trailed in an almost inaudible tone while he leaned towards her. She slowly closed her eyes, parting her lips a bit in anticipation. Naruto though grazed her cheek with his thumb, a smile creeping onto his face. Shifting his hand, he traced her lower soft pink lip with his thumb lightly as a soft moan escaped her mouth.

It was unbelievable how love could change a person's personality. She was fiery, just like Kushina…..it was like, almost impossible to embarrass her while all he had to do was just grin at her to make her blush. Yeah, it was strange….but welcome to him all the more. When she would smile at him, that special soft smile…..he would feel like the luckiest bastard alive in the elemental nations.

"I love you Anko-chan," he whispered as her eyes fluttered open to stare at him.

"I love you too….more than you can imagine," she whispered while leaning into his touch with a smile. Leaning further, he finally claimed her lips in a passionate kiss as they began making out with each other.

**Flashback Ends**

Only the ticking sound of a clock, the room was coated with pin drop silence. He just kept staring at her, lost in those joyful memories.

"Get well soon Anko-chan. I can't wait for things to get back to normal….when we fight over dango and ramen," he whispered in a croaked voice, clearing a strand of her hair from her face. Leaning over, he placed a kiss on her forehead making her mumble something incoherent. Placing her hand gently on the bed, he rubbed his eyes to clear off the moisture that had gathered.

'_Damn these tears! Bonds really do make us sappy…..but stronger at the same time,'_ he mulled with a smile before leaving her room quietly.

"Can't sleep?" turning his head suddenly, his eyes widened.

"Ero-sennin?" he questioned, staring at the white haired sanin as he stood by the wall, his arms folded over his chest.

"Glad you care for them so much kid," he spoke with a smile making the blonde nod.

"Well why wouldn't I? All my life, I wanted someone to love me….and when they love, why wouldn't I care? I'm ready to give up my life for any of them anytime, not that I'm gonna die before becoming hokage by the way," he spoke with a grin making the toad sanin chuckle. Walking towards him, he put his hand on Naruto's head.

"Your father would be proud of you Naruto."

"Really?" he asked making Jiraiya nod.

"You know ero-sennin…the feeling of making your parents proud is really something. I….I haven't had contact with tou-san, and kaa-san until now. To listen to kaa-san say she's proud of me, it was really something," he muttered lowly making Jiraiya smile at him.

"I think…..everything we do, anything….it's to make our parents proud. To one day have them say that they're proud of us. After all, we are their pride right?" he asked with a smile while Jiraiya too stared absent-mindedly into the darkness of the corridors.

"What do you think ero-sennin? Would your parents be proud of you today if they were alive?" Jiraiya's eyes widened when he heard the blonde's question.

"I…..I don't think so Naruto," he spoke in a low tone, a sad expression on his face.

"Hey, how can you say that? I say they must be proud of you!" he exclaimed with a grin making the sanin look at him in surprise.

"How can you say that brat?" he asked with a smirk as they started to stroll through the corridors.

"Well, you are an awesome super strong ninja, you're a sanin too!"

"And I'm a pervert too. Now that's something I don't think they would be proud of, now would they Naruto?" he replied with a chuckle making the blonde.

"Well, tell you what. You were a pervert since…..since you can remember right?"

"Yeaaahh."

"Then I say it was genetic, then that means your father was most probably a pervert too! Which leads me to the conclusion that today he would be proud of you. I mean think…..you are my master, so wouldn't you be ecstatic if I became a pervert like you?" he offered making Jiraiya whistle.

"Now that's some theory you've got. Of course I would be proud if you were a pervert, and I would make a one out of you, believe it!" he mimicked the blonde making him glare at the old man.

'_Now I'm starting to think that may come true. With me surrounded with perverts like ero-senin, Kakashi-sensei, Itachi-nii-san and Ayumi-chan…..that may just happen,'_ he thought with a gloomy expression.

"But aside from that, I've made many mistakes in my life Naruto. My whole life revolves around regret, pain, loneliness…..I did told you about my past earlier, you still think they would be proud of me," he asked with a serious expression making the whiskered blonde smile.

"Everyone makes mistakes Ero-sennin, jiji made too. He too regrets so many of his decisions. When you have so many responsibilities on your shoulders, you're bound to make mistakes….no matter how far you've thought things through. But what matters is that you've continued to march on Ero-sennin. Even with so many obstacles, you never strayed off your path. You still continue to defend the village, unlike Orochimaru…..you're still here and didn't run from your pain. You're one tough nut to crack ero-sennin!" he exclaimed with a grin making the old man grin back at him.

"Hehe….you bet kid! But when did you turn into a philosophical adventurer?" he asked amused making the blonde pout.

"And Hinata-chan says the same thing about me. I'm not philosophical, I just think things through. Well anyways, coming back to the topic….your mother might be angry at you from up there. But she would still love you with all her heart. And believe me, whenever you do something perverse, she must hit your dad everytime saying….'You're responsible for everything! It's your fault he turned out like that!', but she would still adore you. So don't go off thinking that you're alone, cause you're not."

"Oh ho, so you're the one lecturing me today, huh Naruto?" Jiraiya said amusedly making Naruto nod.

"Kaa-san did told me how you feel. Believe me, she can read you like an open book. She knew how hurt you were when I continued to ignore you in the beginning," he spoke making the sanin's expression turn serious.

"Kushina…..," he trailed before ruffling Naruto's hair making him glare at him in annoyance.

"And you know what, I make the most silliest of mistakes. I faked my death during the invasion," he said with an embarrassed blush, yeah….it was embarrassing to admit it. He didn't know what got over him then.

"Hehehe….yeah, Kushina told me about it. You are one unpredictable shinobi brat."

"Kaa-san was angry with me, something any parent would be of course. But she immediately forgave me…..after giving me some threats and warnings for future reference of course. But you get the point don't you, no matter how many mistakes you commit…..they try to make you learn from it, not just hate you for it like others do," he verbalized making the sanin nod.

"So you get it, your parents would be proud of you today! Actually, if I was your dad, I would be too," he muttered while stroking his chin, adopting a thinking pose whereas Jiraiya's eyebrows started twitching.

"Naruto…..did those medicines get to your head," he deadpanned making the blonde sweatdrop.

'_I knew having sex for three-four days straight with Ayumi would mess with my head. What the hell was I sputtering before anyway?'_ he thought while shaking his head furiously comically.

"Sorry Ero-sennin, I don't know what's happening to me. Must be the side effects of Rinnegan I guess," he chuckled making the sanin laugh as he patted the blonde's back.

"Don't worry it happens. I mean, I used to get all philosophical until Tsunade would hit me on the head to shut me up. Our brains operate the same way kid, now that's an encouraging fact!" he grinned making Naruto grin back.

"But that happens, in a shinobi life. Your state of mind tends to change continuously with all the action and stress, so all kind of weird thoughts enter your mind. But hey, who's complaining…..what you said was a fact for the most part kid," Jiraiya said making the jinchuriki nod.

"Now don't you get philosophical on me ero-sennin!" he laughed making the sanin laugh back in return.

Several rooms behind them, was a shadowed figure standing by the corner.

"Those two really are similar to each other. Master and a student….," Kushina smiled as she gazed at the laughing duo's back.

**Timeskip: The Following Morning: Konoha's General Hospital**

"Ohayou Tayuya-chan!"

"Shut up dickhead!" the red haired kunoichi yelled making the smile on the doctor's face slip a bit, but nevertheless he managed to maintain it.

"Time for your checkup. And the nurse told me that you're not eating food regularly. Being a kunoichi, you should know that you need to eat in order to recover as soon as possible."

"Check your own dick you impotent!" she again bellowed making the doctor's eyebrows twitch now as he pulled the curtains aside to let in the sunrays.

"Ah, what a nice clear day!"

"What? Now you're gonna masturbate in clear sunlight?" she asked with a frown making the nurse standing at the door blush in embarrassment as she stifled a giggle while the middle aged doctor bit his lip to control his anger.

"You shouldn't use such foul language. It's unfitting for a kunoichi, there are other patients here too you know," he spoke with a forced smile on his face.

"Are you my old man cocksucker? And I don't give a rat's ass about other whackos here!"

"I'd say you control yourself Tayuya-san," he warned while smiling dangerously at her, a vein throbbing on his forehead.

"What? Is the old impotent getting angry? Do you want your mama to feed you her milk?" she spoke with a grin while the doctor's face slowly started to get red as he gritted his teeth to control himself. He couldn't assault his patient after all.

"I'll leave you for now Tayuya-san. It seems you're not a morning person, I'll send a nurse to check up on you later….hopefully by then you would've calmed down," he spoke through gritted teeth, trying his best not explode here as he walked towards the exit with the nurse stepping aside.

"See you later Impotent-chan! May your dick rise to its former two inch glory!" she spoke cheerfully while waving at him, a grin on her face when the doctor stopped like a rod, having just exited the room.

"LET ME IN! I'M GONNA CLOBBER THIS PUNK! WHO DOES SHE THINK SHE IS?" he yelled as several nurses now held him back, his whole face now red as he tried to just barge in there and show her just how much of a man he was.

"Huh? What's happening here?" Tayuya heard a familiar voice outside as she showed the doctor her middle finger with a smug grin on her face.

"YOU BETTER KEEP YOUR FRIEND IN LINE KIN-SAN!" he yelled as he was dragged by his colleagues and nurses, trying to calm him down.

"Yo Kin-chan! Ohayou!" Tayuya chirped as Kin entered the room with a frown on her face.

"Tayuya-chan, how many times have I told you not to treat the staff here like that. It's not like they did anything to you…on the contrary, they are only treating you. Is that the way to repay their efforts?" she spoke with a sigh making the red haired kunoichi grin more brightly.

"Oh lighten up Kin-chan! What a bright way to start a day, ticking off someone makes me feel I've still I got it!" she replied making Kin smile at her.

"Yeah, the same old Tayuya-chan. So how are you feeling?"

"What do you mean? I was never injured to begin with! They're just holding me for apparently no reason! If it weren't for you, I would've busted out of this place the moment I was awoke," Tayuya said with a frown on her face.

"And then where would we go? We have nowhere to go. Besides…..I don't want to leave Konoha. And then there's Naruto-kun here," she whispered with a light blush on her face making Tayuya's frown go deeper.

"And who's this Naruto you keep talking about? Another dickhead?"

"Don't talk about him like that!" Kin blurted making Tayuya's eyes widen in surprise.

"Hey whoa! You must really like that dickhead then…..whoa, my Kin-chan is in love," she spoke with an astonished expression making Kin's face flush a bright shade of red.

"It's not like that!" she muttered frantically making her raise her eyebrows.

"Then you don't love him," the red haired kunoichi asked making her eyes widen.

"I never implied that!" Kin answered while waving her arms in front of her, clearly embarrassed about the topic whereas Tayuya just sighed. She never understood what was so embarrassing about this, if you liked a dickhead….either admit it or dump the fucker. It was so simple.

"Here, this is her room Naru-kun," Kin turned her head back to see Kushina entering the room, behind her the first thing she saw was a mop of blonde hair.

"Wait a minute…..oh, hey! Ohayou Kakashi-sensei!"

"Oh just come in!" Kushina exclaimed with a sigh before pulling him in before closing the door.

"Oi, matte! Don't pull my new trenchcoat!" Kin's expression changed upon seeing Naruto being pulled by his trenchcoat.

"Naruto-kun!" she exclaimed with a bright smile when he turned his head towards her.

"Kin-chan!" he grinned at her making her blush while Kushina walked towards Tayuya.

"So, I see you're still 'misbehaving' with the staff here," Kushina spoke with a smirk making Tayuya narrow her eyes.

"What's it to you tomato face," she deadpanned making Naruto and Kin stop in their reunion abruptly as their faces paled immediately. The temperature dropped several degrees as the blonde took a step back.

'_Uh oh….,'_ he thought as Kushina's eyes were shadowed.

"What did you say Tayuya-chan?" she asked with a high-sugar sweet smile, her eyebrows twitching while Tayuya's instincts somehow told her to keep quiet for once in her life. The aura this red haired woman in front of her was giving was even worse than Orochimaru. Behind Kushina, was Kin who was repeatedly shaking her head negatively.

'_Please don't say it again Tayuya-chan. I wouldn't be able to save you this time. She's our-'_

"Hokage-sama! Raikage-sama and Mizukage-sama are requesting your presence in your office. I think they're leaving the village now," a chunin slid open the door before bowing, relaying the message.

"Huh? Who're you talking to? Jiji still hasn't recovered you know, and he's still resting in his room," Naruto spoke in confusion.

'_What the….'_ his eyes widened he upon seeing the chunin's smirk. Following the messenger's gaze, he turned his head for his eyes to get as wide as saucers.

"N-No way…." he muttered to himself as he gazed at the 'hokage'.

"I'll be there shortly. You can resume your duties now," the 'hokage' spoke with a serious expression making the chunin bow before he exited the room.

"K-Kaa-san…..y-you are the g-godaime hokage?" Naruto spoke as his pupil zoomed out in shock while Kushina winked at him.

"No longer Kaa-san Naru-kun. It's hokage-sama from now on," she spoke with a smirk while Kin giggled at his gobsmacked expression whereas Tayuya just shook her head.

'_Shithead.'_

**About Mikoto, I know the interaction between Naruto and her might have not met your expectations in this chapter. But don't worry, I'll go more in depth of her feelings about the current circumstances in the future chapters….so don't go thinking I'm rushing things. That's something I always avoid doing so, and because of that my story at some points seemed slow to many of you. ^_^**

**So I hope you liked this chapter, actually….not much happened in this chapter. But I hope you review, it's been so long! And oh…..many a thanks who reviewed my fic during my absence from FF. Thanks a lot you guys, and to those too who have been with me from the beginning. Well, see you next chapter! Ja ne! ;)**

**N6023**


	34. The Aftermath

**Hey guys! Lol, Merry Christmas (oops, too late I guess ^_^)! But oh well, enjoy the holidays! So here's the next chapter-**

**Chapter-34-The Aftermath**

'_What the….,'_ his eyes widened upon seeing the chunin's smirk. Following the messenger's gaze, he turned his head for his eyes to get as wide as saucers.

"N-No way….," he muttered to himself as he gazed at their 'hokage'.

"I'll there shortly. You can resume your duties now," the 'hokage' spoke with a serious expression making the chunins bow before he exited the room.

"K-Kaa-san…..y-you are the g-godaime Hokage?" Naruto as his pupil zoomed out in shock while Kushina winked at him.

"No longer Kaa-san Naru-kun. It's Hokage-sama from now on," she spoke with a smirk while Kin giggled at his gobsmacked expression whereas Tayuya just shook her head.

'_Shithead.'_

"B-But…but…," his eyes were still widened as he tried to come to terms with this shocking news. HIS mother….no, more so his lover was the HOKAGE now! How big was that!

Kushina however, just stared at him with amused eyes. Walking up to him, she ruffled his hair fondly before approaching the door.

"You coming?" she asked with a smirk, standing at the exit door making him snap out of his trance like state. Slowly, a silly grin faded into existence on his face as he closed his eyes.

"_Ayumi-chan! Kaa-san is the godaime Hokage! Can you believe that?"_ he inwardly cheered enthusiastically when Ayumi deadpanned.

"_No, I still can't believe they made Kushina-baka the Hokage. Konoha sure is gonna see some tough times ahead,"_ a smirk on her face when he retorted angrily.

"_HEY! Don't talk about Kaa-san like that! It was her dream of becoming the first female Hokage! Don't you understand? She has achieved her lifelong dream! This calls for a RAMEN PARTY!" _making the bijuu face palm herself. Coming out of his inward conversation, he noticed Kin and Tayuya staring awkwardly at him-wondering how could his face inhibit so many expressions in such a short time. Laughing at them nervously while scratching the back of his head, he turned his head to notice Kushina missing.

"AH! Where did she go? I have to congratulate her!" he exclaimed before rushing out of the room like a storm making Tayuya and Kin cough out the dust.

"Does that shithead always act like this?" the red haired nin deadpanned with twitching eyebrows making Kin grin embarrassingly at her.

**Outside Konoha's General Hospital**

"Oi Kaa-san! Wait!" Kushina turned her head back with a smile to see Naruto exiting the hospital, a frown on his face as he panted for oxygen.

"_So I still haven't recovered completely Ayumi-chan?"_

"_Well, I restored all your chakra reserves and any damage to your body. But still, your muscles are exhausted from all the strain you put them through. You still need some time before you can be at your original strength again,"_ she explained making him sigh as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Naru-kun, you haven't recovered completely have you?" Kushina asked as her smile slowly turned into a frown, concern reflecting in her eyes.

"It seems so. I still feel exhausted, I need some time to recover," he spoke with a sigh making her nod.

"Then don't strain yourself. You played a big part in saving the village, you deserve all the rest. No need to be in a hurry you know," her gentle voice made him smile softly at her.

"Yeah," both of them were now standing outside the hospital, the sun shining brightly on the duo.

"Hey look! Isn't that Naruto-sama?" turning their heads, Naruto's eyes widened when he noticed the passerby's staring at him with something akin to respect and admiration in their eyes, though there were still some who held that cold look.

"Hey, can I get your autograph please?" a boy along with his gang came to him with stars in their eyes making him grin at them in embarrassment.

"Sure!" Kushina gazed at him with a sad smile as she watched the youngsters around telling him how cool he was. Some of them were asking him to show them some elemental dragons, making him stutter in response as she laughed at his expense.

"You must be brave to fight them all!"

"Ah hehe, well all of us tried our best. So it was no big deal," he replied with a smile.

"Can you summon dragons for us please?"

"You look so cool! Where did you get this trenchcoat?"

"Naruto-kun is amazing! He even went toe to toe with Orochimaru!"

"Hey! Now who's spreading those rumours? It was jiji….uh, I mean the sandaime Hokage who took on that sanin," Naruto retorted with the big head no jutsu making them nod furiously while the adults smiled at the group.

"Um Naruto-shama?" surrounded by so many kids, he turned his head upon hearing a meek voice. There was a little girl standing with a dark blush on her face as she stared at her feet. She had purple hair tied up in a pony tail, her large green eyes holding a nervous look while she was biting her lower lip. Smiling at the cute little beauty, he bent down to her level while standing behind her was her mother; who had both of her hands on the little girl's shoulder- a smile itself on her face as she gazed at her bundle of joy.

"Hey there little girl," the blonde spoke with a chuckle as her face was burning a crimson red now as she scratched the ground with her sandal in nervousness.

"What's your name?" lifting her face with by her chin delicately, her large innocent green eyes stared back into his oceanic blue ones as he smiled warmly at her making her cheeks burn crimson red.

"Awwww!" the adults along with Kushina chorused making him glare at them while the girl's whole face now resembled like a tomato.

"A…ne K….ko."

"Huh? I didn't hear you," he spoke before leaning close to her making her sputter a bit as she locked her hands in front of her.

"I-It's Asane Kimoko," she answered making him grin at her.

"That's a great name! My name is Uzumaki Naruto! It's nice to meet you Kimiko-chan!" Kimiko's face brightened into a smile as she nodded at him, her cheeks a cute shade of pink.

"U-Um…Naruto-shama. Can I swee you Richigan pwease?" she asked timidly making her mother giggle while the blonde jinchuriki held a confused expression on his face.

'_Richigan?'_

"What she means is your Rinnegan Naruto-kun," the girl's mother spoke gently making him open his mouth in an 'o' in realization as he chuckled softly.

"Sure Kimiko-chan!" Naruto exclaimed with his foxy grin when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning back, he saw Kushina's concerned expression as he nodded in assurance.

"Here goes," he spoke to the little girl as she watched him with an expression of concentration on her face, both of her small fists in front of her chest. Channeling excessive chakra deliberately for some show off, all of the civilian's eyes widened there when they felt an aura of peacefulness and sereneness engulf them like a warm blanket. Opening his eyes slowly, Kimiko watched mesmerized as they glowed white for a few seconds. Purple sclera, a dot-like black pupil being surrounded by two definite clear black concentric circles defined his doujutsu now.

Kushina too basked in this aura with a smile as she gazed into his eyes, which radiated so much power that civilians found themselves paralyzed at their spots.

"Wow…" the purple haired girl breathed in wonder as her mother gazed at his eyes in awe.

"So, do I look ugly?" he joked with a grin making Kimiko shake her head furiously.

"Naruto-shama's eyes are pwetty," she whispered with a grin of her own, her cheeks pink making him laugh lightly before he pouted.

"Only my eyes? What about me?" this time her eyes widened as she quickly averted her gaze with a dark blush.

"Naruto-shama's pwetty too," she whispered almost inaudibly such that only he could hear with his enhanced senses making him snicker to himself. Gently putting his hand on her head, he spoke quietly so only she could hear.

"Well, you are pretty too Kimiko-chan," her eyes widened as the color on her cheeks got ten times darker. Naruto laughed to himself when she suddenly turned to bury her face in her mother's clothes, the older woman chuckling upon hearing a muffled squeal escape Kimiko.

Standing up, he bowed to the mother with a smile making her smile back at him.

"Alright kids, back out. We have some work to do," Kushina intervened with a serious expression when she noticed that her whiskered blonde was again being surrounded by the little devils. All of them immediately backed down, whispering among themselves that she was the new Hokage of the leaf.

"Well, see you guys later," waving to them, Naruto scurried to catch up to Kushina's retreating form.

"So, how does it feel to be the first female Hokage?" he asked with an ecstatic expression on his face making her giggle.

"It sure feels nice. But the paperwork I have to deal with is something else though," she answered with a frown making him chuckle as they walked towards the Hokage tower.

"It will be difficult for you alright. The village is being rebuilt and dealt quite the damage. To the world, Konoha sure is weak and prone to attacks right now," he muttered making her nod seriously.

"Yeah, it's being rebuilt right now. And we lost quite the amount of skilled jounins and chunins. Well, thanks to you, the damage was much less than it could have been. Those dragons really pulled quite some stunts at the border back then."

"Hmm, I haven't met them since. I'll have to thank them later, all of them had risked their lives."

"Here we are," she uttered as they nodded to the chunins guards before entering the tower.

"Kaa-san, where are the others? You know, the genins and all. Are they helping in rebuilding the village?" Kushina nodded with a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Hokage-sama, they are waiting for you," an Anbu bowed to her making her nod lightly while Naruto blinked a few times in surprise as they stood outside the door to her office.

"Oh? I didn't realize. I'll be having a look around the village Kaa-san, you have a village to rule!" he exclaimed with a 'closed eyes' grin, inwardly contemplating that Kushina from now on would be much busy than before. He'll probably have less time to spend with her, but oh well. With position like being a kage of a village as large as Konoha, responsibilities were sure to sit on your shoulders. However, he didn't mind much. It was Kushina's dream, and he'll be damned if he got in her way.

"Naru-kun…" her gentle voice stopped him in his tracks for he had turned around to walk back.

"Huh?"

"Let's rule the village together," his eyes widened as he gazed at the mischievous glint in her violet eyes before being dragged through the door to her office.

"Wait Kaa-san!"

"Hah! You got the joker sandaime-dono!"

"Damn it! Looks like Tsunade's luck got to me."

"Hehe, back in my days-"

"Urusai Ao! I will kill you."

"Poor sempai."

"BEE! I'll have to up your training!"

"CAN IT OMOI!"

WHAM!

"Ow!"

"This is so uncool."

"NOT NOW NIBI!"

Both Kushina and Naruto stood at the doors with a dumbfounded look on their faces as they gazed at the current scene in the office.

"_Oh, never thought I'd see something like this,"_ came Ayumi's amused voice as the Uzumaki duo continued to gawk at the group in front of them….it was like Sasuke saying that he 'liked' girls.

First thing, Hiruzen and Mei were playing cards with Ao and Choujiro being the spectators. Second, A comically held Bee in a head lock while Samui was drinking a cola. Omoi as usual was sucking on his popsicle with Karui having a vein popped on her forehead, probably annoyed as hell by his anxious behavior. Yugito, just like Naruto had a blush on her face, probably due to her perverted tenant.

"Well, looks like they started the party without us, ne Kaa-san?" offered Naruto with a nervous smile when he noticed the pissed off expression on Kushina's face. He gulped audibly before sighing to himself.

'_Here we go again.'_

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU GUYS THINK YOU'RE DOING?" everyone stopped their respective business to stare at her with wide eyes, sweating bullets as they immediately stood at attention like a commando.

"Yo Kushina, how's it going?" A greeted her with a smirk.

"And its Hokage-dono to you A!" she spoke with an accusing finger making everybody sweatdrop.

'_Likewise it's supposed to be Raikage-dono to you,'_ all of them thought simultaneously.

"Jiji! How are you?" all of their eyes turned to stare at the blonde figure in surprise, they hadn't noticed him yet.

"Yo Naruto! How do you do?" the blonde smiled at his fellow jinchuriki. He was very grateful to Bee for taking care of Roshi during the invasion, it was something he wanted to thank him for.

"I'm fine Bee. By the way, thanks for watching my back back then," he verbalized with a grin making Kushina smile while Mei watched him with a light blush on her face, glad that he was fine now. Samui though hadn't interacted with her fellow blonde much, but strangely she was rather relieved that he was alright. It disturbed her a bit that she was concerned for him when she didn't even know the jinchuriki properly. Yugito however could only blush more furiously, again probably due to the perverted two tailed cat.

"I'm fine Naruto-kun. Though it's all thanks to you that I'm even alive," Hiruzen spoke with a smile making the blonde blush in embarrassment whereas Kushina walked towards her desk.

"So, you guys leaving?" she asked while gazing at the village from her window.

"Yeah, now that Konoha's been attacked. Who knows they might target our village next? We have pull in the defenses tight from now. The fact that Iwa, Suna and this new village Oto attacked Konoha is not a small deal. They are practically declaring war on us!" A exclaimed with his anger rising as the mood in the room suddenly got serious.

"Yeah, but Suna was tricked also. The yondaime Kazekage was killed by Orochimaru even before the invasion, all of them were tricked," Mei spoke making Kushina nod while Naruto's eyes widened in surprise.

'_The yondaime Kazekage? Temari's father….was killed by Orochimaru?' _he thought, clearly shocked by the turn of events.

"And what's more, Sunagakure has requested a peace treaty as well as an alliance with Konoha. The only defense in course of their actions they have to offer is that nobody knew about Orochimaru's plot. All the while, they thought they were following their Kazekage's orders- while in fact it was Orochimaru. He had the military strength of two villages at his disposal," Kushina said as she rubbed her forearm, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"What I'm surprised is that Iwa too joined in this madness. I'd never imagined that Onoki would be out for revenge for the yondaime Hokage's actions in the third great shinobi world war," Hiruzen considered while Kushina stiffened a bit at the mention of Minato's name, something which Naruto did not fail to notice.

"Hn! And they too claim that they got the 'invitation' from the Suna's Kazekage himself, whom they didn't know was Orochimaru. Do they really think they can get away with this?" A spoke fiercely as everyone was busy in his/her own thoughts.

"Be that as it may, we don't need another war anytime soon. I think it's better that we accept Suna's proposal," the red haired Uzumaki mused making their eyes widen.

"Are you sure Kushina? They backstabbed Konoha this time, what's stopping them from doing so in the future?" Mei said making her turn around to face them.

"They are weak right now. Most of their forces were assigned to attack Konoha and got crushed. So I don't think they can risk another war with us, especially when we are under a triangular alliance with Kiri and Kumo. I think we can safely assume that for the time being, we can trust them," she explained making Naruto and several others nod.

"With Iwa?" A asked with a quirked eyebrow when the elder Sarutobi answered.

"I think we should ignore them for the time being. Though I'd say we send some units to patrol the border connecting Hi no Kuni and Tsuchi no Kuni. What do you say Kushina?"

"I agree. Attacking them now would be futile. The rocky mountain ranges surrounding the village and the country, provides them a natural stronghold. They have strong defenses, and it would be foolish to attack them and further deplete our military resources," she said grimly when A quickly intervened.

"Even if we assist Konoha?" everyone's eyes widened at this making him smirk.

"What are you planning?" Kushina asked skeptically, getting over her initial surprise making him shrug.

"It's just that I believe in attacking my prey rather than just sit and wait for it to make its move. Who knows, the next they attack is Kumo considering we are known for our military strength."

"Now now, let's not make any hasty decisions shall we," everybody snapped their heads upon hearing a familiar voice.

"Jiraiya?" Kushina exclaimed in surprise upon recognizing the voice. Soon, a figure emerged from a small toad's….mouth which was at a dark corner of the office. However, Kushina and Naruto were both taken aback by the serious expression on his face.

'_That's one hell of a technique he's got, I couldn't even sense his presence,'_ the yondaime Raikage thought while eyeing the toad sanin.

"Let's not deviate from the main topic because of which we formed this triangular alliance shall we?" he offered with a frown making their eyes widen, how could they? They had forgotten about it in the midst of this invasion and rebuilding Konoha!

"Damn!" A muttered to himself while Kushina stared at him with a dead serious expression, she did not like that expression on the sanin's face.

"Kushina, they are on the move. I don't know why, they shouldn't be doing that so soon. But from what my spies gathered, Akatsuki is specifically after Naruto now," dropping the bombshell, everyone stared at him wide eyed.

"What?" Kushina asked, as if not believing him. The whole organization of S-ranked criminals, now after Naruto? Jiraiya had a grim expression on his face as he nodded back.

"Yeah, I just got the info this morning. The positive effect of this is that the other eight jinchuriki are safe for the time being, but they are solely concentrating on Naruto now," Kushina could only sigh heavily as she sat down on her chair, her heart beating faster as the redhead gazed at her bundle of joy.

"Why the sudden move? Why me?" the whiskered blonde asked quietly making all of them turn to him, who was still standing at the door's entrance.

"It's because they are afraid. They are afraid of the rates at which you're growing strong day by day. Mostly, they are afraid of the Rinnegan. What my guess is that they don't want to wait in your case, for they must not want the Rinnegan to progress further. One of their spies must have seen you in action during the invasion; it's no surprise to me that they're doing this. You are special Naruto, you hold the strongest of the bijuu inside you. And they know that a combination of a doujutsu such as Rinnegan and Kyuubi's chakra is something they can't possibly overlook," he paused as everyone remained silent, not believing that it could have come to this. Even A had released a relieved sigh that Bee and Yugito would be out of trouble for a while, but Naruto kind of grew on him….so he was worried a little for him too.

The boy had endured so much, possibly more than the other jinchuriki- and he now has such a powerful organization tailing him. Kushina though just stayed silent as she tried to come up with this shocking nows, her 'Naru-kun' was now in more trouble than ever before. And she knew, that even she alone couldn't protect him from these S-ranked nins . If Jiraiya was this serious, then the situation truly was not in their favour.

"But let's not get ourselves down over this," Mei spoke with a smile making all of them blink at her in confusion.

"The fact that they are now solely concentrating on Naruto-kun means that for the meanwhile, other jinchuriki would be safe and we wouldn't have to worry about their safety for now. We can now concentrate all our plans and efforts into defending Naruto-kun," she said when A spoke in agreement.

"Well, you do have a point. Earlier, we had to make sure to watch over all of our jinchuriki. But still, it doesn't make the news any less grave that it's Naruto they are after now."

"_Naruto-kun….."_ Ayumi's concerned voice pulled his attention in as he blinked a few times.

"_Don't worry Ayumi-chan, I'm alright. Just a little shaken up over this. I…I never expected things could turn out this way. Earlier Itachi-nii said Akatsuki members worked in pairs, each pair concentrating on their respective tasks. But now that I'm the only task assigned to all of them, those five or six pairs would be after me simultaneously. This is not a good news….definitely not a good one. Right now, even I know that I'm probably no match for any of them. The only way out of this is that I have to increase my training levels considerably,"_ clearly he was disturbed by this while Ayumi could only nod silently as he shifted his attention to the conversation going outside.

A frown slowly took birth on his face as he noticed the others staring at him in concern. Kushina was probably the most concerned right now, well that didn't come as much of a surprise. Samui too felt worried for him, although her stoic and cold expression dictated indifference towards the matter. Karui however, couldn't help but hope he would be alright. He was a jinchuriki, and she knew by observing Yugito and Bee, what he must have gone through. And to be hunted like this, it really must be heavy for the kid.

"_Nibi, think we should do something?"_ Yugito asked in worry as she gazed at the whiskered blonde.

"_There's nothing we can do kitten. This burden right now is his alone to carry, and do you think that A would let you do anything?"_ well, she did have a point. But Yugito, as a fellow jinchuriki and possibly a friend, didn't want to leave him to those criminals like that. Now or later, they would have to face Akatsuki…she just had to do something. Bee too was having similar thoughts right now as he considered his options in this matter.

Founding himself a bit annoyed by their stares, he grinned before speaking, "Oh well, that just means more training. Let them come, I'm not afraid!"

They stared at him wide eyed as he grinned foxily, trying to lift off the mood. A, Mei, Jiraiya and Hiruzen smirked at him while Kushina just gazed at him with a worried look. She knew that he was just putting up a brave front, but he was just a human after all; he was her baby. Kushina knew that he must be feeling insecure, anxious, fear….he had to, there's no way he wouldn't feel those emotions. He may be able to effectively clamp up on his feelings, but she knew him all too well.

Naruto was perfectly capable of deluding himself if the situation got desperate. That was one reason he was so stubborn. She knew how he had compressed the darkness in him regarding the villager's treatment towards him; he was just like anybody else after all. The blonde did feel those things, but he just compressed them into the deepest pits of his subconscious.

She was aware of how he felt a bit ticked off that some of the elder villagers had just started treating him as a hero upon seeing his role in the invasion, when before they were the ones who ignored and hated him. It was like those adult villagers, again ignored the fact that they had treated him like a monster and not even one of them had tried to apologize for their actions. It disgusted even her, but they were Uzumaki. They didn't ponder over the negative past, and instead cherished what current positive aspects their life had to offer.

Her son was now recognized by the upcoming generation and some of those old villagers, that's what mattered to her. He was well on his path of accomplishing his dreams.

"So, what should be our next move?" A inquired when Jiraiya answered.

"For now, the only thing we can do is wait for them to make their move. We don't have any information regarding their bases, considering they keep changing their meeting locations everytime. Itachi did say that they meet each other through some holographic projections, which their ring is responsible for. Right now, we should consider training ourselves. We're gonna need all the advantage we can get."

"Also Jiraiya, have you heard from Itachi or maybe Kisame lately? It's been a month since they've reported," Hiruzen stated making Naruto's eyes widen while Jiraiya just shook his head.

"No, that's the reason I had to use my own spy network to get this latest piece information. Does this mean that their leader suspects them?" Jiraiya said as he folded his arms over his chest.

"Least likely Jiraiya, Itachi is extremely careful and catious when it comes to matters like these. And it's difficult to know what goes on in his mind due to his mastery over hiding his emotions completely," Kushina spoke about her student, her hands folded beneath her chin with a serious expression.

"Don't be so sure Kushina. This organization is out of the world, the way Itachi described their abilities earlier clearly suggests so. Who knows what their leader might be capable of, he too must have some sort of special abilities of his own," Sarutobi intervened as he took a puff of his cigar, now wearing the Hokage robes while A and Mei nodded with him.

"But since now Mikoto-chan is alive, it could be that Itachi-nii may plan on sneakily visiting her soon. She's his mother after all," Naruto said seriously making them nod, it was a definite possibility.

"But does Orochimaru know about this?" Mei questioned.

"Who knows? But I'll place my bet that he does know, he has his way of gathering information," the godaime Hokage replied with a shrug.

"Then that means the Uchiha brat too might try to break in here. Then what Kushina?" Jiraiya asked, curious about her decision regarding the ex-'last uchiha loyal to the village'.

"It's simple," she replied with a serious tone in her voice, her eyes narrowed before continuing.

"Uchiha Sasuke attacked a member of Konoha, Uzumaki Naruto to be exact during the invasion. He was even seen assisting the Iwa's jinchuriki Roshi, I have no choice but to declare him as a missing nin. It's clear he has joined forces with Orochimaru, probably in search of power to kill Uchiha Itachi," Naruto's eyes widened at the news. So, his fears had come to life. She really was going to declare Sasuke as a missing nin. The blonde however, remembered his conversation with Mikoto earlier this morning.

**Flashback: Earlier Today: Konoha's General Hospital: Mikoto's Room**

Sliding the door open gently for the second time in just a few hours, Naruto had to say he was surprised when he saw Mikoto laying while staring at the ceiling, as if deep in her thoughts.

"Mikoto-chan," he called making her blink a few times when she noticed him, surprise written over her face as she quickly sat up.

"Oh Naruto-kun! I didn't expect you to be awake so early in the morning," she uttered with a smile making him smile back her warmly.

"I wasn't asleep in the first place actually, was just busy in cuddling up with Kaa-san," he spoke with an embarrassed blush, making her giggle at his expense.

"So, you and Kushina-chan huh? It's weird actually, but something that hasn't happened in the shinobi world for the first time. This however, is a rare case where Kushina has skipped thirteen years; so the age gap is not that evident I think. I guess what matters is that both of you are happy, and the changes in your DNA because of your Rinnegan helps dissolve the matter too. However, concerning Minato; I'm not sure if he would be happy about this," the Uchiha matriarch joked, though the matter only succeeded in wiping out the smile off Naruto's face as a sad expression replaced it.

Noticing this, Mikoto immediately cursed herself mentally.

"Hey Naruto-kun, I'm so-"

"No, it's not your fault. Now that I think about it, Tou-san would be mad at me. I mean, what kind of a son I am?" he spoke with a depressed sigh when Mikoto signaled him to come closer. Sitting on the bed side besides her, she smiled warmly at him before putting her hand on his shoulder.

"Well, he may be. But you should know how happy you make Kushina. I've never seen her smile so brightly, even when Minato was with her. I've noticed the way she sees you, the way she talks about you. I'll say that she's head over heels for you, she really loves you. As a lover, she doesn't want anyone except you, she wants to fill the hole in your heart which was created over the years. As a mother, she's really overprotective of you and wants to keep you away from all kinds of dangers. So I guess, her love for you is complicated…..but definitely something pure, which she cherishes with all of her heart," with the look of concentration on his face, she knew that he was taking this serious. And the way he blushed over the fact that Kushina loved him really made the blonde look so cute to her.

"But….what about Tou-san? A month ago, Kaa-san said that she hated him. But how…..how could she hate someone she married and loved? How could she forget all those moments she must have spent with dad?" he asked, such innocence on his face that it made Mikoto hug him tightly, his eyes widening in surprise.

"You see Naruto-kun, Kushina-chan is just trying to deny the situation. I know for a fact that some small part of her still loves Minato, but at the same time she hates him for the burden he put on you. But I think with time, she'll get over that. I mean, it's been only a month for her since _it_ was sealed inside you. So I think that a small part of her will never stop loving Minato, that is something which is completely normal. But now, she loves you more than anything in this world. That baka, she really sometimes acts like a teenager when it comes to you," she verbalized with a sigh making the blonde smile, he somehow understood the situation a bit; but still this was complicated as hell!

"Earlier I thought that since I resemble Tou-san so much, she might have seen him in me and that's why she was trying to fill that hole in her life," he spoke a bit shakily making Mikoto frown deeply at that.

"But I thought, if it meant Kaa-san's happiness….then so be it. Atleast, I still would be able to have her," he mumbled when she pulled him back harshly.

"No! It has nothing to do with Minato you idiot!" his eyes widened at her outburst, the gentle woman never talked like that. Realizing that he was gaping at her, she blushed in embarrassment while loosening her hold on his shoulders.

"What I mean Naruto-kun is that you have something else that pulls her in, which attracts every fiber of her being very strongly. She sees you for you, separately from Minato. You are not the yondaime Hokage, you are not famous like him, you are not the yellow flash or the one who was feared all over the world. To her, you are a young man who despite what was thrown at him, how he was treated, strives each and every day of his life to achieve his dreams, to prove himself. Minato didn't have the strongest bijuu sealed inside of him, he didn't have the villagers hating him every single day since he was a child, he didn't have an organization such as Akatsuki after him at the age of twelve. In looks, you may be similar to him….but personality wise, you're both completely different. So remember that she's sees you for the admirable person you are, and not just a replacement. And I think she doesn't even want any replacement, she only needs you," moisture gathered in his eyes at hearing that as the blonde bit his lower lip.

He didn't tell anybody, but he has been having these thoughts during the month before. To think, he thought of Kaa-san as a sort of…..'using' him, it just made him sick to his stomach. How could he have doubted her? But that was again something which he just compressed deep within himself. He knew dark thoughts, after all those experiences with the villagers, took birth within him. It was difficult for him to trust anybody in the first place. But talking to Mikoto, somehow compelled him to spill those things to her….he really trusted the kind and gentle woman. She was someone he was most comfortable with in sharing every little aspect of his life.

Both of them now sat in silence as he gradually calmed himself down while Mikoto rubbed his back gently in a comforting gesture.

"Mikoto-chan, thanks. I don't what I would've done if it was not for you. You were always there to support me, even before Kaa-san. I owe you so much," he said in gratitude, a warm smile tugging his lips whereas the Uchiha blushed lightly at his words, for some reason finding herself happy about the special place she held in his heart.

"If only…..," he started with a sigh before continuing.

"If only I could make you smile too," she blinked in confusion at that, what was he talking about?

"Huh, what do you mean? You do make me smile, aren't your pranks enough that sometimes I think I might die of laughing?" she joked with a chuckle making him snort before the blonde became serious again.

"I'm talking about Sasuke. I wish I could change him, I'm sure Kaa-san told you all about him," he spoke nervously, not sure how to approach the subject when Mikoto's smile disappeared.

"I was on the same team as his, but I couldn't make him open up to me. He was always dead set on trying to become stronger, and I….trying to match upto him. But all of that changed the day I got my Rinnegan, I suddenly became stronger. He became jealous, frustrated and isolated himself from the rest of us even more. I'm sorry Mikoto-chan….I'm really sorry," his voice melancholic as he stared at his lap, not daring to meet her gaze.

"N-Naruto…." Lifting his head up, his eyes widened upon noticing the tears streaming down her cheeks. Panic rushed his body as he stared at her shaking form. Mikoto had her eyes closed while she was biting her lower lip to restrain herself from losing control.

"K-Kushina did told me everything. I….I don't know what to do. First I th-thought that it was all Itachi's fault, but it seems I was w-wrong. Then the w-way S-Sasuke turned o-out…..," trailing, a few sobs escaped her lips before she threw herself at him. Naruto hugged her tightly in comfort as she began to sob uncontrollably in his chest, warm tears flowing like a river as she released all her grief.

It clenched his heart to see a strong and gentle kunoichi like Mikoto to be in such a shape, what had she done to deserve this? She was always trying to help others, going out of her way to make sure others weren't hurt.

"I….Naruto-kun, I d-don't know w-what to do!" she yelled loudly, her voice muffled as the blonde hugged her tighter, his arms wrapped protectively around her.

"Mikoto-chan, don't give up so soon. Itachi-nii is on our side remember? I'm sure that when Sasuke comes to know of you being alive, he'll change," he tried to comfort her Eas she continued to cry for a few more minutes while he just chose to stay silent.

Leaning back slowly, she began to wipe her eyes as the blonde wiped her cheeks with his thumb making her cheeks turn a light shade of pink at the contact.

Naruto just smiled warmly at her as she too smiled a bit hesitantly with puffy red eyes, wondering how those villagers could have hated this angel. Yes, to her….he was just like some angel, always comforting others and trying to make others happy at the expense of his own desires and needs.

"I-Itachi-nii?" she questioned, stressing at the 'nii' part making him grin sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Yeah, I began to call him that during the time he trained me in Tsukiyomi," her black onyx eyes warmed at him as she smiled softly, glad her eldest son was so close to him. It really warmed her heart that they got to be so close to each other.

"And what did you call Sasuke-kun by?" she asked, curious about how both of them called each other by. However, the Uchiha already had a hunch.

"Sasuke-teme," he deadpanned making her sweatdrop at that, yeah….she was right. Gazing outside the window, her expression then turned despondent.

"Do you….do you think Sasuke could change when he comes to know of me. I…..I really want to see him. Atleast for once, I want to talk to him," she asked softly making him smile at her; it was good that she hadn't lost hope completely.

"We wouldn't know until we give it a try, now would we?" he asked with silly grin making her giggle at his antics.

"But the way Kushina described his actions, I wouldn't be surprised if he's marked as a missing nin. He did attack you during the invasion after all," she said with sadness, not understanding why he would go so far as to attack Naruto when he was after Itachi…..not that the latter was a good thing too anyway.

Naruto's expression however turned contemplative as he thought over the events that had taken place during the invasion. So much was going on back then that he didn't have time to concentrate on Sasuke right then. A small smile tugged his lips as he gazed outside from the window.

"Don't worry, I think I have a plan."

**Flashback Ends**

"Actually Kaa-san, now that I remember….Sasuke didn't attack me of his own will," Naruto intervened making ALL of them turn towards him, taken by surprise.

"What do you mean Naruto?" Kushina asked, using his full name to reflect her seriousness over the situation, making him wince inside at the way she was staring coldly at him.

'_I guess she already knows where I'm going with this. She knows me too damn well for her own good,'_ he thought with an inward sigh.

"What I mean is that, just like Roshi of the Lava Release…..he too was under a genjutsu at that time."

"WHAT!" A exclaimed loudly in astonishment while the others were stunned. Kushina however, knew something else was going on.

"Are you sure Naruto?" Jiraiya asked with narrowed eyes making the blonde nod.

"Yeah, I saw it with my Rinnegan. Both of them were under extremely strong genjutsus, so I think both Sasuke and Roshi didn't attack of their own free will," he spoke seriously, trying to act as natural as he could while a deep frown settled on Kushina's face. She had a hunch that he was hiding something, but she also had no proof in the matter. Naruto was the only one who had confronted the Uchiha during the invasion.

"And earlier too, he never left the village willingly. While unconscious, he was kidnapped by Orochimaru. And this time too, he was taken by Kabuto….if what Kakashi-sensei said was true. So we have no exact evidence to mark him as a missing nin yet, all we know is that Orochimaru could be controlling him….or making someone else control him," the blonde uttered grimly.

'_Bingo!'_ he exclaimed mentally with an internal smirk, knowing he had the perfect valid reasons to defend the 'teme'.

"Well, he does have a point Kushina. We can't mark him as such, he has showed no signs of leaving the village willingly yet," Hiruzen said making Kushina narrow her eyes at Naruto while the blonde acted to be deep in thought, whereas in reality he was just avoiding her accusing stare.

'_I don't know what you're planning Naru-kun, but this had better be good.'_

**Okay okay, don't get all flamy on me just cause the blonde here is saving Sasuke. I have stated the reasons above, and if you don't agree….well screw me. And believe me that whatever is happening or gonna happen in the next few chapters will be for a reason. I think you guys would enjoy with what I have in store for you from here on out :)**

**Oh, it seems the Akatsuki is after Naruto….not just Itachi and Kisame, but ALL of them. Damn, the situation is realistic I think, but at the same time….hopeless for our favourite blonde, ne? So thanks for the review people, I really appreciate your support even when I've made so many mistakes in this fic.**

**Okay, so I just wanted to respond to an anonymous reviewer 'truetalker05' who reviewed the previous chapter. I don't usually do this, but I felt compelled to after reading it-**

**Alright, so first of all….I'm really glad that you liked this fic and it used to be your favourite. I also respect your views as to how you view my work. Also, thanks for being honest….that's something I really appreciate! :)**

**But I think I have the right to defend my story too. So your first reason for losing interest in this is the 'OOC'-ness in Naruto's character right? I understand what you're trying to say. I know I started this fic with enough clichés like his mask, blind Sasuke and Sakura bashing and other things, but believe me when I say this IS Naruto. If you're saying that most authors make him predictable, completely change his personality except his love for ramen….in some places you may be right, but this is fan fiction and people are tired of seeing the manga Naruto. We tweak his personalities to make it more interesting, but I agree that we should not make a complete OOC out of him. Taking this fic for example, you say he's really predictable and not really Naruto. **

**How can you say that after the most recent stunt he pulled by 'faking his death' during the invasion? That is something I prefer extremely 'Naruto-ish'. The Naruto in this fic, as many have said already is someone who can be serious if the situation calls for it, is more considerate of other's feelings….but is still goofy and has his idiotic moments, is a prankster and is sometimes clueless when it comes to women. **

**You say that he shouldn't have been mad when Hiruzen got hurt and was about to die. Um….that's something I really don't agree with. Even in the beginning of this fic, Itachi had used Hiruzen to awaken his Rinnegan (when he killed the sandaime in front of Naruto in Tsukiyomi), that itself signified how close Naruto was to his 'jiji'. In the canon, he might have not been THAT close to the old guy….but in my fic, he is. Do note that the original Narutoverse and my fic's universe are completely different, actually…..almost all fics are completely different than canon, so you can't compare it to Kishi's work you know.**

**The second reason you state is that Naruto should have more darkness in him. Now this reason I think contradicts your statement of Naruto not really being 'Naruto'. In canon, he NEVER did anything which signified he had darkness hidden in him….I think only Gaara did that. Naruto in canon, hid his darkness behind his happy go lucky personality. The 'dark Naruto' was introduced just recently in the waterfalls of truth on the island where he went for training with Bee.**

**But here, you're demanding that Naruto should have more darkness. I think I already explained that (excluding this chapter) that he DOES have darkness in him, he just keeps it compressed. Example: his conversation with Kurenai in the Forest of Death. If you haven't forgotten….even then he himself admitted that he hated those elder villagers for their stereotypical views and for making the younger generation against him. So he does have darkness, he just doesn't show it that much (and there was an instance in this fic when he did. Remember when he blasted the civilians with a shinra tensei earlier after preliminaries?). And now since the villagers are changing, and seeing his personality….I don't think he would show it that much, but nevertheless, darkness and negative emotions is something which is definitely deep inside him, it's human behavior after all. No one is a saint and keeps bearing that shit, but oh well….I guess Naruto is different. ^_^**

**And now, why would he be angry of Kushina? She's someone he really loves….I just can't imagine a scenario of him being angry with her for becoming the Hokage. In canon, he was mad with Tsunade because she insulted the previous Hokage in the first place….so she was immediately on his 'The Teme's' bingo book for a while. So an angry outburst right now, I atleast think…..would be completely out of place.**

**Actually, the ONLY thing that bothered me in your review and other reviews was that you guys are not giving me a chance, and plainly saying 'WTF, Kushina shouldn't be a Hokage!'**

**If you think over this realistically….it's a quite expected decision that she's becoming the Hokage considering that she's already respected, liked and acknowledged by the villagers. And if you think things between her and Naruto are gonna get dull and that her action life will be fading, well then….think again pals! **

**The only thing I'm saying is that have a little more faith in me will ya? I know I made many mistakes in this fic, but still do remember that this was my first story and it's bound to have mistakes. I'm trying to improve at every step, so try to have some faith in what I'm writing. Nobody wants to ruin their plot deliberately you know. I've got this fic planned out for a long trip, so there's a reason I'm doing this. It's not like-"Oh let's make Kushina the fifth hokage! It would be so cool and original!" That was NOT my thinking when I decided this three months back, her role as a Hokage would fit in for the future plot and it's not just to make her look badass or anything.**

**And finally 'truetalker05', thanks pal! I really appreciate you being honest and telling me of your views. Even though it got me a little ticked, but you plainly said what you felt about this. So no hard feelings between us, ne? :)**

**And to the ALL of my readers and reviewers, if you don't like something in this…..don't hesitate and say so. At least that way, I'll be on track. And for those who already like what's going on currently, well then…..this sucker is going to get even better in the coming arcs, I promise! **

**So, sorry for my rant and I hope no one was offended by this. I really hope so. Ahm, so please review and be HONEST! Lol ;)**

**See you guys in the next chapter! Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	35. The Shocking Truth! Or Lie?

**YO! HAPPY NEW YEAR you guys! Hope 2012 brings you lots of happiness, gives you the strength to face the unavoidable difficulties and for me…lots of reviews and readers! Lol :D**

**So here's a chapter I'm sure which is gonna change your views of this fic, either for good….or bad. So let's get started-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter-35-The Shocking Truth!...Or Lie?<strong>

* * *

><p>"Are you sure Naruto?" Jiraiya asked with narrowed eyes making the blonde nod.<p>

"Yeah, I saw it with my Rinnegan. Both of them were under extremely strong genjutsus, so I think both Sasuke and Roshi didn't attack of their own free will," he spoke seriously, trying to act as natural as he could while a deep frown settled on Kushina's face. She had a hunch that he was hiding something, but she also had no proof regarding the matter. Naruto was the only one who had confronted the Uchiha during the invasion.

"And earlier too, he never left the village willingly. While unconscious, he was kidnapped by Orochimaru. And this time too, he was taken by Kabuto….if what Kakashi-sensei said was true. So we have no exact evidence to mark him as a missing nin yet, all we know is that Orochimaru could be controlling him….or making someone else control him," the blonde uttered grimly.

'_Bingo!'_ he exclaimed mentally with an internal smirk, knowing he had the perfect valid reasons to defend the 'teme'.

"Well, he does have a point Kushina. We can't mark him as such, he has showed no signs of leaving the village willingly yet," Hiruzen said making Kushina narrow her eyes at Naruto while the blonde acted to be deep in thought, whereas in reality he was just avoiding her accusing stare.

'_I don't know what you're planning Naru-kun, but this had better be good,'_ she thought with her lips pursed in suspicion while a tense silence ensued in the Hokage's office.

"Kushina, so what do you plan on doing regarding the gaki?" A questioned with raised eyebrows, curious as to what the godaime's take on this would be. He knew how close Naruto was to her, it must have shaken her up pretty badly- even though she was doing a damn well job in composing herself.

"I don't know right now. I have to think this over," Kushina said in a drained tone, a sigh escaping her lips as she closed her eyes. Everyone seemed to be drowned in their own thoughts while Jiraiya too was uncharacteristically quiet as he stared outside through the window with a grim expression on his face.

Naruto however, was thankful that the matter over Sasuke had been changed by A. He didn't like to deceive Kushina like that, he didn't like lying to her; but for Mikoto, who had done so much for him in the past- he had to do this. Besides, there was still a chance for Sasuke. By seeing the Uchiha attack him during the invasion, it made the blonde pity the guy. He was slowly being engulfed by darkness, the thirst for revenge.

Bringing Mikoto back gave Naruto some hope that the idiot could still deviate from the path of 'avenger'. After all, that's what Itachi wanted too, for his brother to not follow the path of darkness and hunger for power that the Uchiha clan had 'worshipped' in the past.

"But until I reach a decision, you're not allowed to leave the village Uzumaki Naruto," Kushina spoke sternly with a sharp gaze making Naruto's eyes widen while the others nodded in agreement. He was not expecting her to declare such a thing, but oh well. The decision did made sense and without some missions, he would get more time to train and reflect on his previous fights.

"Got it," he said with a serious expression when Mei spoke.

"I think we should be leaving now Hokage-sama," she spoke with amusement in her voice at the 'Hokage-sama' part making Kushina glare at her. Mei however just smiled sweetly, ignoring her glare making a vein throb on Kushina's forehead while Hiruzen just shook his head at their antics.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's Nothern Gate<strong>

* * *

><p>"Thanks for visiting the chunins exams and for assisting our village in time of need. Konoha is grateful to both of you, Raikage-dono….Mizukage-dono," Hiruzen expressed his gratitude with a smile while bowing to them a bit.<p>

"No need to thank us sandaime-dono, I'm sure you would've done the same if it was you in our place," Mei spoke politely with a smile as all of them stood at the gate, saying their goodbyes to each other.

"I was itching to fight anyway, so it was nothing," A said with a grunt, a smirk on his face.

"Does it hurt to simply say, 'Your Welcome'?" Kushina deadpanned making a vein tick on his forehead with an audible pop.

"You wanna fight godaime?" A yelled with shark teeth, his face red with anger.

"Hm, you said something yondaime?" she asked innocently making his eyebrows twitch, there was just no use fighting verbally with his woman. Meanwhile, Omoi, Karui, Samui, Ao, Choujiro, Hiruzen and Naruto sweatdropped collectively at their antics.

'_Two short tempered kages at one place, never a good thing,'_ Hiruzen pondered while shaking his head in exasperation.

"So Naruto-san, it was nice to meet you," Yugito spoke with a soft smile, this time no traces of blush on her face surprising the whiskered blonde.

"Yeah, it was nice to meet someone who's similar to me," he replied with a grin while rubbing the back of his head.

"Don't forget me, the Octo Bee!" turning his head, he laughed awkwardly before shaking hands with the hachibi jinchuriki.

"Yeah, nice to have met you too Bee. And thanks again for helping me back then, I owe you one," he spoke sincerely while tightening their grip on each other's hands, genuine smiles on both of their faces. Nodding to him finally, he shifted his gaze to Kirabi's team and immediately sweatdropped. Karui had Omoi in a tight headlock, a pissed expression on her face while Samui was…..well, just quietly standing there, staring at her two teammates with boredom reflecting in her sky blue orbs.

Walking upto them, he first greeted the blonde seeing as the other two were busy right now.

"Samui-san…." he called making her turn her head to look at him with those same cold, frosty blue orbs.

"Naruto-san," she acknowledged back with an expressionless face. Unsure of what to say, he scratched the back of his head while laughing at her nervously.

"Um….well I just wanted to say goodbye. It was nice to meet you," he spoke hesitantly, smiling warmly at her making her lips curl upwards ever so slightly.

"I'm glad to have met you Naruto-san," she spoke with an uplifted tone in her voice before extending her right hand forwards. Naruto's mouth opened a bit in surprise as he stared at her extended hand, not expecting any sort of response from her. Looking back into her eyes, he was again surprised to see the brightness in them-unlike a moment ago.

"O-Oh, yeah," he replied with a goofy grin on his face before shaking her hand gently.

'_Soft,'_ was the only thing his mind registered upon feeling their skin rub against each other, her creamy hand completely fitting in his. A faint blush crept up his face as he continued to smile, shaking her hand. Samui too however continued to shake his hand, a smile on her face as she gazed at the 'closed eyes' bright smile on his face.

"Oi, how long are you planning to shake each other?" Karui appeared besides them with a bored look on her face making both of them jerk as they pulled their hands back lightning fast.

"A-Ahehehehe," Naruto laughed with a dark blush on his face while Samui just remained quiet, her gaze averted with her cheeks a cute shade of pink.

"They're blushing! This is bad! What if they have a crush on each other and then start dating each other! Then they will say-'Oh I love you', and-'Oh I never realized, I love you too!' Then they get married and have blonde kids yelling 'dattebayo' and 'cool'! And then those devils will demand my lolli-chan! Uncle Omoi can't-"

WHAM!

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

This time however, Karui had her jaw on the ground; along with Omoi of course while Naruto stood there panting, his face a dark shade of red as he shook his fists in anger. Samui however was standing on the same spot while facing the other way, her eyes were twitching dangerously while her cheeks were flushed a shade of red Yugito thought she would never see on her adopted sister.

An approving look took birth in Karui's eyes as she nodded to herself in satisfaction while Omoi groaned as he slowly stoop up, as if nothing had happened and continued to suck on his 'Lolli-chan'.

"Omoi….," he jerked a bit upon hearing the hoarfrost voice, the temperature around them suddenly dropping several degrees. Turning his head back slowly, in fear like a robot; he was met with the expressionless face of Samui. Her eyes were so cold that it seemed like hell had frozen over, he knew she was pissed!

'_Uh oh, she's angry now,' _Karui thought while taking stumbling steps back in fear. Usually Samui remained calm and collected. She ignored most of the jabs that Omoi had to throw at her breasts and shoulders. But an angry Samui was never a good thing.

"Once we reach the village, you and me…..kenjutsu," her voice sharp and chilly, each syllable like a senbon piercing his ass…..ouch.

"Uuuh…" Naruto found himself clueless as he stared at the quivering form of Omoi and the expression of pity on Karui's face.

"M-Matte Samui, I was only jok-"

"You and me, kenjutsu," she spoke again, calmly this time making Omoi sigh in defeat as his shoulders slumped while Naruto blinked owlishly.

'_These guys sure are strange,'_ he thought before walking upto Karui.

"Oh Karui-san," he spoke making her look at him as he extended his hand. Smirking at the blonde, both of them shook hands while Omoi had a depressed expression on his face as he sucked on his popsicle.

"Oi Omoi," the blonde called awkwardly making the anxious shinobi look at him.

"Take care and try not to be so anxious the next time we meet," he spoke calmly with a comic expression making Omoi smile hesitantly.

"Yeah, goodbye Naruto," shaking their hands, both of them nodded to each other with a smile.

"Naruto-san, come here for a second," he shifted his gaze upon hearing Yugito's voice, confusion etched on his face upon noticing that she and Bee were calling him over to talk in private.

Walking upto them, he asked.

"So, what's up?" smirking at the whiskered blonde, Kirabi stepped forward.

"Naruto nine'o, whenever Akatsuki's trail on your ass is hot, you go four tails on the spot!" Yugito face palmed herself, muttering curses under her breath while Naruto just stared at the guy.

"Okaaay…."

"What he means Naruto-san is that whenever you are in whatsoever serious trouble, just use Kyuubi's chakra and ascend to the four tailed state. That way Nibi and Hachibi would be able to detect it and guide us to the location where it was last detected," she explained with a smile making Naruto's eyes widen.

"Y-You guys don't need to do that. I mean….Akatsuki's after you too, and it will only make things for them easier. Besides, I'm sure old man Raikage wouldn't permit you guys to do so," he reasoned with a frown.

"Bakamono! Don't quiver like a homo! We jinchuriki fight together, let's make those Akatsuke punks wither!" the rapper interrupted with a frown making Naruto lower his head as he smiled to himself.

'_Jinchuriki…..we fight together huh?'_ he pondered, his heart warming up at the fact that they were ready to watch his back, even if it endangered them in the process.

"Besides, now or later-we would have to face them. Why not do it now when one of us is in trouble and needs us the most!" the nibi jinchuriki said with a smirk making Naruto nod.

"_Hey Ayumi, I never knew you bijuu could sense each other's chakra from even miles away,"_ Naruto spoke inwardly with genuine curiosity.

"_Well yeah, I forgot to tell you that part. All of us are familiar with each other's chakra signatures and we can point out the location where we had sensed it the last time. This could come in pretty handy Naruto-kun."_

"_Yeah, I'm sure this can also help us in case of emergency situations."_

Zooming out, he verbalized with a firm voice.

"Then promise me that you too would do the same in case Akatsuki comes after you. I don't trust them, it could also be a trap to lure us into believing that I'm the only one being targeted so that the other jinchuriki may loosen themselves up. Who knows, they may have had willingly leaked out this information to fool us? We have to be ready for anything."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. That's another possibility to catch us off guard. But the fact is Naruto-san, I can only go upto two tails for obvious reasons….so I don't think Kyuubi would be able to sense me," Yugito spoke with a somewhat disappointed look while Bee remained silent when Naruto intervened with a grin.

"Well, Ayum…..K-Kyuubi says that she has the strongest of the sensing ability among all the bijuu and CAN point me to your location, although not as precise, but still somewhat close," both Yugito's and Bee's mouths opened in an 'O' in realization.

"It's a deal then, we're gonna make those mothafucka's hide back in their stinkin' den!" the hachibi jinchuriki blabbered before extending his fist making both Yugito and Naruto chuckle.

"We fight together!" they spoke simultaneously, connecting their fists with each other-smiles of determination and courage on their faces.

"OI GAKI! We're leaving now!" snapping his head back, he saw Ao waving at him-standing alongside with Choujiro and the other kages.

Turning back, he grinned foxily, "See you later guys! Ja ne!"

Walking towards the Kiri group, he shook hands with Ao and Choujiro- the latter of whom reminded him of the old Hinata.

"Mei-chan…" he stopped in front of her with a smile while Kushina, Hiruzen and A seemed to be busy in their discussion whereas Ao and Choujiro had started to bicker with each other; more like Ao telling him of his 'Back in my days…' theory.

"Naruto-kun…" she greeted back with a sweet genuine smile on her face making him blush a bit.

"Well, I just wanted to say thanks for all that you did for me, and for encouraging me back then. It was a pleasure to have known you Mei-chan," he pronounced with a warm smile. Mei nodded to him before closing the distance between them to take him into a gentle hug.

"The pleasure was all mine foxy-kun," she uttered seductively into his ears making the blonde blush.

"You have gotten strong Naruto-kun, just as you said. I'm happy," she spoke in a low tone before lifting her hand to gaze at her palm. The symbol on it was glowing: a swirling sign surrounded by nine tails. Her smile got softer as she continued to observe her palm.

"Look at your right palm Naruto-kun," her hot breath was tickling his skin making him a bit dizzy but nevertheless, he managed to nod before looking at his palm. And to his shock, that symbol which had glowed quite a numerous times during the previous month; was again glowing red brighter than ever.

"W-Why is it glowing?" he asked in awe making her giggle before the red haired kage leaned back.

"This signifies the growing bond between the two of us, you and me," the way she spoke flushed his cheeks, a strange warm blanket covering his heart.

"Ah, it's a good thing then Mei-chan. I'm glad to be your friend!" the enthusiasm in his voice and the bright grin made her heart skip a beat. He just had this strange effect on those around him, it made them feel as if nothing could go wrong, as if they could do anything.

"Don't forget to visit Kirigakure whenever you get the chance Naruto-kun," she spoke with a light pink tint on her cheeks.

"You bet!" he exclaimed as a burst of laughter escaped his lips making her giggle too. Leaning down instinctively, she took a hold of his chin before kissing him on the cheek lovingly. Naruto stood there agape, his eyes widened as a scarlet red blush promptly covered his face.

"See you later foxy-kun," she said in amusement while ruffling his hair. Winking at the perplexed blonde, Mei started to walk out of the gates with Ao and Choujiro following her whilst shaking their heads at the antics of their Mizukage.

Kushina's eyebrows however were twitching dangerously for she had seen their interaction.

'_How dare she flirt with my Naru-kun like that?'_ she thought with fire burning in her eyes before glaring at the Mizukage's back.

'_I wouldn't let you charm him that easily Mei!'_ she inwardly declared while shaking her fist in front of her face to signify her point while A and Hiruzen sweatdropped at her antics.

"You sure you chose the right Hokage?" A whispered in the sandaime's ears after bending down making Hiruzen sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Well, I hope so," he replied making A grunt in response…yeah right.

"Alright, it's time to go," he declared while walking towards the exit as Yugito, Bee and his team promptly followed him. They turned for the last time to wave at the trio standing at the gates as Naruto too waved back enthusiastically with a grin.

"TAKE CARE YOU GUYS!" he yelled ecstatically making Kushina stare at him with a smile while Hiruzen sighed at the blonde's endless energy. Even after just getting out of the hospital today, he didn't know the meaning of word 'exhaustion' and 'rest'.

"Kushina-chan, I'll be heading off then….I still need some rest. And remember not to slack off in your duties, you are the Hokage now and have to take the responsibility," he chided with authority making Kushina roll her eyes.

"Yeah yeah, I understand. I don't need to be lectured by you," she muttered making his eyes twitch before he sighed. Pinching the bridge of his nose yet again, he glanced at Naruto before shunshining out of the area.

Naruto however was lost in his own thoughts as he gazed at the silhouette of the retreating figures.

'_So Akatsuki is after me huh? Well then, better get to training!'_ he mulled over as his smile faded to form a serious expression, gazing out into the greenery while his trench coat flew with the breeze.

"Naruto…." hearing his name, he snapped out of his trance before turning around to come face to face with Kushina.

"In my office….now," she ordered with authority in her voice, her tone serious before vanishing into a puff of smoke making him gulp audibly in nervousness.

'_Could she know that I was lying to her earlier about Sasuke?'_ he thought with a blank expression when he caught the sight of two guards there.

"Yo Naruto!" Izumo waved at him making him wave back with a grin.

"Playing the hero eh? Boy you sure have gotten strong! And if you need help for some pranks in the future, count us in!" Kotetsu yelled with a smirk making the blonde scratch the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Sure! I'll see you guys later!" yelling back, he shunshined out in a burst of flames.

"Man I've gotta learn that Fire Shunshin. We live in the Land of Fire and yet can't do that, it's pitiful!" Kotetsu whined making Izumo nod in agreement.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Hokage's Office: Several Minutes Later<strong>

* * *

><p>Standing just outside the office, in front of the door-Naruto found himself nervous for what was about to come.<p>

'_Okay, I have to act calm and collective. I can't tell Kaa-san anything yet,'_ he mentally decided, clenching and unclenching his fists to shoot the nervousness away.

'_Oh what the hell! I'll just be myself and face her head on!'_ he thought with determination, nodding to himself before kicking the door open with a loud bang, straining its hinges in the process.

"You called Hokage-sama?" he spoke loudly with a grin while the Hokage's assistant Akane shook her head at the blonde's antics.

Entering the office with high spirits, his grin faltered a bit upon noticing Kushina glaring at him, her eyes twitching dangerously.

"At what age do we learn to knock Naru-kun?" she asked making him scratch his whiskered cheek as he closed the door gently this time.

"Oh come on Kaa-san, you've become too uptight!" he exclaimed making her sigh in exasperation as she massaged her temples.

'_Well, he's my son after all,'_ she mused before standing from her chair and went through some hand signs.

"Huh?" he tilted his head in confusion when she started to walk towards him, keeping a straight face-unnerving him a bit.

"Um Kaa-san, is something wrong?" he asked when she walked upto him before wrapping her arms around his torso, putting her head on his chest to sigh softly.

"Kaa-san…." he trailed in surprise before wrapping his arms around her as she closed her eyes.

"The Akatsuki is after you now Naru-kun, we have to up your training. It's gonna be even more difficult than before," she stated making him turn serious suddenly, his mood taking a one-eighty degree turn at hearing the tone in her voice.

"Don't worry Kushina-chan, I won't let them capture me. I won't let them take Ayumi-chan," he assured her, running his hands through her long silky hair gently. Kushina hugged him tighter, the sound of his heart beats being a melody to her ears as she snuggled into his chest making him smile. He used her name quite rarely, and each time it made her heart flutter- she always longed for him to call her like that.

"About Sasuke…." she started while miraculously, Naruto was able to keep himself calm. He was thankful that he had not given any outward signs of nervousness when she had called his name. Kushina however sighed, her eyes closed as she reveled in his warmth.

"I don't know if what you said was true or not, but I trust you. I hope whatever you're planning doesn't go against the village Naru-kun," she spoke softly making his lips curl upwards.

'"Got it Kaa-san. Make no mistake however that it wouldn't endanger Konoha in the process, I will protect this place," he declared making her nod gently while he played with the tresses of her hair with his finger. Burying his face in her hair, he inhaled the addictive scent of sweet peas. Taking a gentle hold of her chin, he lifted her face to make her look at him- glossy violet eyes meeting bright blue orbs.

Leaning forward, he gently captured her pink supple lips making both of their hearts skip a beat simultaneously, electric sparks flooding their tense systems-easing all their worries. Kushina wrapped her arms around his neck while he rubbed her back as they kept their lips locked for several seconds. Pulling back, Kushina opened her eyes slowly as he smiled warmly at her.

Noticing a tear slip down her cheek, he quickly leaned forward to kiss it before wiping the trail of moisture with his thumb while she leaned into his touch, her eyes closed in content.

"I'm worried for you koi," she muttered softly as he tightened his hold on her.

"Don't be, I promise I wouldn't leave you or this village," he tried to comfort her, his voice holding the determination she liked about him so much.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Training Ground 7: Several Hours Later<strong>

* * *

><p>"Man, I've gotta train seriously from now on! No slacking off this time!" Naruto exclaimed to himself loudly as he walked through the forest towards the training ground 7, team seven's training ground. He had just spent some time with Kushina these past hours, cuddling with her as they talked about their future plans. It seems Jiraiya, his 'Ero-sennin' had opted to train him for this- and he couldn't deny that he was pretty excited about it.<p>

Despite his mind boggling improvements this past month, he knew that was upto a maximum of a mid-jounin's level-just bordering the high jounin one. He was no match for any of the higher names, so training under Jiraiya- who could wipe the floor with him anytime had him pumped up now.

"Darn that Ero-sennin! I couldn't find him anywhere, not even in any of the hot springs! Just where did he slip off to?" the blonde muttered to himself with a frown when he heard some noises.

"Huh? What's that sound? Is it Kakashi-sensei…..and Sakura-chan?" he questioned to himself before smiling at the prospect of meeting them. Putting chakra to his feet, he dashed towards the training ground.

Reaching the clearing, his eyes widened upon noticing Kakashi and Sakura sparring with each other. Around them, there were several craters on the ground, on large boulders as well as on some tree trunks. What have they been upto anyway?

"C'mon Sakura! You're not fast enough. You're punches have strength, but they're not fast enough!" Kakashi spoke loudly as he easily dodged Sakura's fist sideways when she went for another.

"I'm…..trying!" she exclaimed with what seemed to be frustration on her face. However, what surprised Naruto was the ferocity in her green eyes as blood dripped down her bandaged fists.

Crouching down, the copy ninja dodged another punch before she went for a roundhouse sliding kick making him jump into the air. She had several bruises covering her body, her hair a little undone when she took out two kunai from her pouch before flinging them one after another at Kakashi with accuracy and impressive speed.

Taking out a kunai while in midair, Kakashi prepared to deflect the incoming projectiles.

POOF!

His lone eye widened though when one of the kunai thrown by Sakura suddenly exploded into large amounts of smoke; engulfing his form. The other kunai behind the first one puffed into smoke too, but this time to reveal another Sakura, a look of brutal determination in her eyes with her fist reared when she yelled.

"Take THIS!" entering the smoke cloud with her momentum, her fist connected with where Kakashi's jaw was last seen.

POOF!

The real Sakura- who was standing on the ground- cursed loudly when her clone exited the smoke with her momentum before puffing back into smoke.

"Dammit! That was a clone too!" Naruto's mouth was now open like a dry fish as he continued to gaze at them.

'_What the hell! When did she get this good?'_

Meanwhile Sakura, who right now was panting heavily turned her head as she searched for the missing jounin.

'_Where is he? Right….left….up….'_ she thought when her eyes widened as the ground beneath her began to rumble a bit. Reflexes kicking in, she jumped just in time when two hands burst forth the hard soil to catch thin air. This time however, not having using chakra to enhance her jump, she quickly reared her fist…..

WHAM!

…..to slam it on the ground, between from where the hands had blasted out. Naruto's eyes bulged out in astonishment when a few chunks of earth flew out in different directions while a medium sized crater formed on the ground as an impact.

Only the sounds of heavy panting now filled the area as she stared at the crater, having jumped away from the epicenter after the punch had connected.

"D-Did I…get him?" she asked to herself.

'_Tchh, always using clones to save his ass. That's Kakashi-sensei for you,'_ Naruto thought before jumping on the branch just above him.

"Yo sensei" the blonde greeted quietly as he kept staring towards Sakura with Kakashi sitting beside him, reading his 'literature'.

"How are you Naruto? I can say that you haven't recovered completely yet, you look exhausted," he spoke calmly while reading his book making the blonde nod.

"Yeah, I'm definitely out of it right now. But I should recover fully in a day or two," he shrugged when the one eyed jounin closed his book.

"Impressive isn't she?" he asked, his eyes gazing in the direction of Sakura making Naruto nod.

"I don't know what to say, I'm practically speechless here sensei. How did she improve so much?"

"Let's go there first, she's losing her temper," Naruto chuckled before nodding as both of jumped down the tree to walk towards the pink haired genin.

"Oh where is he dammit!" Sakura yelled as she continued to pant, not caring that her hair was disheveled this time-or that she was covered in bruises and blood was dripping down her fists.

"Calm down Sakura, that's enough for today!" she snapped her head to find Kakashi along with Naruto walking towards her making her eyes widen upon noticing the blonde.

"N-Naruto?" she stuttered making the blonde grin at her while she found herself getting self-conscious now, trying to comb her hair with her hands while dusting her clothes and wiping the dirt off her face.

"Sakura-chan! How are you?" he asked full of enthusiasm making her smile a bit shyly at him.

"I'm f-fine thanks. I should be….the one a-asking you. S-Seeing your f-face, I d-don't think you've recovered yet," she spoke while panting making him sigh in exasperation.

"Oh come on! Whoever meets me is saying that! What's up with you guys? Can't you see I'm as good as new?"

"No" came the flat response of the duo immediately making him drop his head in defeat.

"So Sakura, you managed to take out three of my clones today; good work. Using transformation technique on the kunai, one of which was a smoke bomb and a shadow clone was a good combination. Keep up the good work," the jounin spoke calmly making Sakura nod seriously.

"Thanks sensei," she answered, wiping the sweat off her brow when Naruto interrupted.

"JUST WAIT A MINUTE!" making both of them stare at the blonde in bewilderment.

"Um….something wrong Naruto?" Kakashi asked with raised eyebrow making the addressed blonde nod with a frown.

"How in the hell can you say-'Keep up the good work', when she's doing awesome! You're not giving her enough credit sensei!" he said while mimicking Kakashi in between comically making Sakura giggle, her cheeks getting flushed in embarrassment while the jounin just chuckled awkwardly.

"Never mind duh! Listen Sakura-chan! You're doing SO awesome! You've really become strong, and to use kage bunshin, whoa! I'd never imagined you using that technique considering your chakra reserves but I guess even your chakra levels have increased!" he spoke with a grin, complimenting her with conviction in his voice making Sakura look at her feet as she fidgeted in her place.

"But tell me one thing, that punch you just pulled and all these craters. Those are chakra enhanced aren't they? Kakashi-sensei, so you are teaching her Tsunade-the slug sanin's technique….you copied that with your Sharingan too?" the blonde asked in awe making the one eyed jounin shake his head in negative.

"No, I don't know how to do that. It requires absolutely precise chakra control and if try that, I usually end up with broken bones and a right arm fracture. However, I do know the basics of the technique in theory. Sakura here has amazing chakra control, and I believe she can master that," he explained with a serious 'eye' expression making Naruto nod with a smile while Sakura found herself here blushing up a storm.

"Sugoi! You sure are gonna become one hell of kunoichi Sakura-chan! I can't wait to have a spar with you, it will b-" Naruto abruptly stopped speaking making Kakashi and Sakura gaze at him with confusion etched on their faces.

'_Why is he…..'_ following Naruto's eyes, who currently was staring upwards behind them with his eyes widened a bit, Kakashi's own lone eye widened too upon noticing a black crow sitting on a branch. The shocking thing was that it had a Sharingan in its left eye as it stared at them.

Naruto's widened eyes however slowly softened as his lips curled upwards, a smile replacing the surprised expression. The crow however suddenly flapped its wings before taking off in the opposite direction.

"Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan….I'll talk to you guys later," the blonde spoke frantically before taking off in the direction of where the black crow had retreated to.

"Huh? What got into him so suddenly?" Sakura asked as Kakashi continued to stare at Naruto's withdrawing form.

* * *

><p><strong>With Naruto<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>He's here!' <em>the blonde thought with a grin, barely able to keep his excitement as he pumped chakra to his feet to keep up with the black crow. Although he was now panting, his muscles begging him to stop…the excitement, the adrenaline was too high for him to stop. Sweat poured down the side of his face in exhaustion, but he wasn't paying attention to anything but the crow.

'_Here I come sensei!'_

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Unknown Location (The same location as shown in animemanga when Itachi and Kisame fought Kakashi, Gai, Asuma and Kurenai in Konoha) **

* * *

><p>After following the damn crow for several minutes it finally stopped to land on a pole by a narrow river there when Naruto too landed on the ground besides the river, panting heavily but nevertheless a smile on his face.<p>

"Huh…where is he?" he asked himself while looking here and there whereas the crow slowly disintegrated into nothing.

"Long time no see, Naruto-kun," he snapped his head back to see the familiar duo of Itachi and Kisame standing there on water, one having a serious expression on his face while the other was grinning as usual.

"Itachi-nii! Kisame! How are you guys?" the blonde asked with an ecstatic grin while Itachi's expression remained serious whereas Kisame seemed to be grinning more and more by the second.

"Itachi-nii? It seems he used us pretty well, right Kisame?" the Uchiha spoke in a monotone voice while staring at the blonde.

"Yeah, seems that the kid holds us in high regards. Wonder what we did to deserve that?" he spoke in a rough voice as the blonde's grin slowly faded.

"What are you guys talking about? You must have come to meet Mikoto-chan right? And you don't have to stare at me l-"

"Stop Naruto," the blonde was interrupted when he felt a firm hand on his shoulder.

"K-Kakashi-sensei?" he stuttered to notice the copy ninja standing beside him with a serious expression on his face.

"Naruto, stay on alert! Something's wrong," Kakashi whispered harshly making the blonde stare at him in bewilderment. During the month, the blonde had told him of what had happened in the forest of death. He had informed Kakashi about Itachi and Kisame working as spies for Konoha, the reason for Itachi killing his clan and how they had trained him. Then why was he standing on guard as if they were enemies?

"Hatake Kakashi," Itachi muttered softly when the jounin suddenly dashed towards Kisame at neck breaking speeds- water rifting violently as he took out a kunai to slash it at one of the seven swordsmen of the mist at blurry speeds.

CLANG!

"My my, aren't we feisty today?" Kisame said with a grin as both of them stood in a clash, sparks flying due to the hot friction as the kunai rubbed against the Samehada.

"Kakashi-sensei! What the hell is wrong with you?" Naruto yelled with a frown, still panting due to the exhaustion he was feeling currently.

"Naruto! Get out of here and get Hokage-sama! You're in no condition to fight and I sense something's wrong!" the jounin yelled seriously as he lifted his headband to reveal his Sharingan making Naruto's eyes widen in shock.

"W-What is he…." the blonde muttered as he stood there perplexed while Itachi was standing beside Kisame with a calm expression on his face. Not knowing what was going on, the blonde clenched his fists as anger began to flood him.

He knew that Itachi and Kisame were acting a bit strange, but that doesn't mean you can just charge in there and attack them. They could also be faking their behavior as an Akatsuki spy may be monitoring their movements, there were so many factors to be considered. He himself always preached about looking 'underneath the underneath'.

"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU SENSEI? STOP THIS RIGHT NOW!" the blonde yelled, anger filling his system as he panted, his eyes half lidded-he could already feel himself losing consciousness. Ayumi too however was strangely quiet right now.

'_What is happening to Kakashi-sensei? Is he under a genjutsu too? I have to check with-'_

SQUELCH!

"NARUTO!"

"Arghh!" the blonde's thoughts were however interrupted when he was suddenly stabbed with a kunai in the gut, followed by Kakashi's scream.

"I can't let you run away Naruto-kun," blood streamed down the blonde's chin as he coughed some blood violently, gritting his teeth in immense pain.

"_NARUTO-KUN!" _came the scream of Ayumi while the blonde could feel his body getting numb as he continued to cough blood, the kunai now soaked with the hemoglobin as drops of blood fell on the dirt. Lifting his head slowly, Naruto's eyes widened in SHOCK upon seeing the expressionless face of Itachi, the Uchiha's onyx eyes coldly staring into his blue orbs.

SPULCH!

The kunai was pulled out roughly as some blood sprayed out, jerking Naruto's body in the process who slowly collapsed to his knees. The blonde stared wide eyed, his body frozen in shock as he continued to stare at Itachi's face; which now was covered with drops of his own blood.

"NARUTO! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Kakashi yelled as he stared at the blonde's kneeling form, blood gushing down his gut and mouth as he continued to stare wide eyed, as if he was in a trance.

"Don't turn your back on me Sharingan no Kakashi!" Kisame mocked as he pushed harder with his sword when Kakashi jumped back.

Turning his head towards Naruto, he dashed towards him when Kisame appeared in front of him, his grin predatory while Kakashi cursed under his breath.

"Let's give them some alone time shall we, what do you say we enjoy ourselves here?"

'_This is not good! Although I trust Kyuubi in healing his injuries, Naruto's body hasn't recovered from the strain he put himself through during the invasion. I have to somehow call for help, though my chakra spike should've reached them by now. Just hang on for a little bit Naruto. I don't what's going on with these two, but keeping him safe is the first priority right now,'_ the copy ninja pondered to himself.

Meanwhile with Itachi and Naruto, both of them just stayed in their positions while the latter couldn't comprehend what was going on?

"I-Itachi….-nii, w-why?" he stuttered with a pained expression as he held his stomach, trying to stop the bleeding while he could feel his own chakra working overtime to heal his injury. The Uchiha however just stayed silent as he continued to gaze at the kneeling blonde.

"B-Back then..."

"There was nothing back then Naruto-kun. The fact is, it was not us back then," he said quietly making the blonde's eyes widen.

"W-What do you mean? It w-was you…" he managed to choke out, the pain was leaving him slowly but he was losing control of his body, it was getting numb.

"It was us, but…we were not in control of our actions back then," seeing the look of confusion, anger and pain in Naruto's eyes, he continued.

"I see you are not aware of that fact. I guess I have to explain it to you, that man really played us all," he spoke in a monotone voice before continuing.

"Back then, we were in a genjutsu," he spoke simply as the world around Naruto stopped, his pupils shrinking in shock. What did he mean? Genjutsu? Did he consider him an idiot to believe that?

"D-Don't…DON'T FUCK WITH ME! WHY….w-why are you doing this?" Naruto yelled before coughing violently as his voice got softer, eyes clenched in pain.

"_Naruto! Don't push yourself! I'm trying to heal your injuries, pushing yourself will only make matters worse!'_

Right now, it didn't matter to him. He had to know what was going on? Was Itachi doing this on purpose, was he forced this Akatsuki leader to do so? Did they come to know that Itachi and Kisame were leaking out their information? After all, Hiruzen did say that he hadn't heard from Itachi for almost a month now.

Bending down, Itachi spoke again," Why do you find so hard to believe that? If Roshi of the Lava Release, jinchuriki of the yonbi can be controlled by a genjutsu, then why can't I and Kisame be?"

Breathing deeply, the whiskered blonde lifted his head to speak.

"I…I don't believe you. You m-mean….the one w-who c-controlled Roshi, had p-put you under a g-genjutsu too?"

"Shimura Danzo," Naruto's eyes yet again widened in shock. That old war hawk? How could he do that?

Seeing the forming question in his eyes, Itachi spoke again.

"Didn't you ever wonder what was under all those bandages Naruto-kun? An old war hawk like him, do you think he's really crippled like that?" racking his mind, Naruto had heard of Danzo from Kushina. But he had never given the fact a thought, he presumed the old guy must have been crippled during the previous war.

"Heh, yeah. That old prune hides a bunch of Sharingans under all that bandage crap!" came the loud voice of Kisame as Kakashi dodged yet another of his sword swipes, his and Naruto's eyes widening at the fact.

"Danzo, has….Sharingans?" the copy ninja asked while Itachi stood up as he started walking back. Naruto was currently laying on the ground as he clutched his stomach in immeasurable pain, his whole body was going numb now. What was happening?

"Even if we believe what you've said, you possess the Mangekyou Sharingan Itachi. It's impossible to trap especially you in a genjutsu, and so strong so as to completely control both of your actions," Kakashi spoke as a water clone of him formed near Naruto, checking his condition.

"You don't know the true powers of the Sharingan Hatake. After all….you're not an Uchiha," Itachi said making the jounin narrow his eyes.

"**Koto Amatsukami** (Distinguished Heavenly Gods), have you heard of it Kakashi?" seeing the confusion on the jounin's face, he continued.

"It's the most powerful genjutsu of the Mangekyou Sharingan, in particular…..the Mangekyou Sharingan of Uchiha Shisui," now Kakashi felt his spine twist in shock.

"Uchiha Shisui? What do you mean? You were the one to kill him in the first place! Do you mean to say Danzo possesses Uchiha Shisui's eyes?" the jounin asked, a cold sweat running down his forehead making Itachi smirk a bit.

"As expected of Hatake Kakashi. However, he only possesses one eye in his bandaged right eye socket. The other one, I don't know."

"Why are you telling us all of this?" Kakashi asked in suspicion.

"Danzo has been a thorn in our plans from the beginning, it's only an advantage to us if Konoha gets rid of that man," he answered while Naruto seemed to have slipped into unconsciousness.

"And what's this Koto Amatsukami?"

"Hey Itachi, we don't have to answer all of his questions you know, let's just take the brat and get out of here!" Kisame spoke with a grin while Itachi just ignored him.

"Koto Amatsukami, a technique that allows the user to enter the opponent's mind and manipulate them by giving them false experiences, making it seem as if they were doing things of their own free will. It's a genjutsu of the highest class which can only be used after an interval of around ten years after it has been used," he spoke when Kakashi intervened quickly.

"If it can be used only after a time span of a decade, then how did Danzo control Roshi? It had only been a month since he had controlled you guys," Kakashi spoke making Itachi close his eyes.

"The Shodaime Hokage, Hashirama Senju's DNA cells, which Orochimaru planted into Danzo before leaving the village, can reduce that period drastically," he said making the jounin's breathing hitch in shock.

'_What is he saying? This is ridiculous! There's no way this is possible, he may just be bluffing to throw us off guard,'_ Kakashi thought as he clenched his kunai tightly, not knowing what to do. Was he supposed to believe such a preposterous theory?

"I….whatever y-you s-say. I d-don't believe you," the trio turned their heads to see Naruto lifting his head, his eyes fierce as he coughed some more blood.

"Oh, I'm impressed. Despite Sasori's poison numbing your body, you still managed to retain consciousness," Itachi spoke calmly while the blonde continued to cough.

"Naruto, don't push yourself. I know you're hurt, we'll solve this later. Just rest for now," the water clone of Kakashi said in concern.

"No….H-How could you? HOW COULD YOU? You forgot all the training you gave me! Those two months we spent in Tsukiyomi! All those things you taught me! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" he yelled, using up his remaining energy before panting heavily. Kakashi's eyes softened when he noticed a fear tears slipping down the blonde's cheek while Itachi's face remained emotionless.

'_How could you do this Itachi-nii? I don't believe you, no matter what you say. The tears that I accidently noticed back then, the sorrowness I saw in your eyes at that time….was it, was it all a lie? Was Danzo playing with my emotions all the time? I…..don't believe this shit! I just…can't,'_ he thought as more tears glossed his vision.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay okay! I know what I'm doing and I'm not trying to ruin my fic, but all of this is happening for a reason. I don't want to listen you guys flaming about- 'First decide whether Itachi's a good guy or a bad guy'. I've already said I've planned the plot for this fic carefully, so sit back and just keep reading. <strong>

**Oh, ALL of the things will be explained in the coming chapters about which you guys may be wondering about. If you want to ask questions however, they are welcome and I'll try to answer them if it doesn't reveal the future plot.**

**I know there will be some who wouldn't be happy by this, some who would by surprised and accept this. Well I can't satisfy everyone, but keep that everything will be for the better and this fic may be taking a dark turn, but….well just wait and see. **

**So flame or whatever you want, reviews are welcome and greatly desired by yours truly. Ah, and thanks to those who've been reviewing and PM'ing me, I appreciate and respect your views on this fic. So review, and until next time. Ja ne :)**

**N6023**


	36. Off to Baachan!

**Hey guys! So I see some of you liked the twist in the last chapter while some ofyou didn't. That's fine, but beware that there will be more twists coming in this fic, completely unexpected ones...but for the better I assure you. :P**

**Also, the controversial (lol) statement of Kushina last chapter has beenedited, those who complained would know what I'm talking about. Now let's begin with the chapter-**

**Chapter-36-Off to Baa-chan!**

"I….whatever y-you s-say. I d-don't believe you," the trio turned their heads to see Naruto lifting his head, his eyes fierce as he coughed some more blood.

"Oh, I'm impressed. Despite Sasori's poison numbing your body, you still managed to retain consciousness," Itachi spoke calmly while the blonde continued to cough.

"Naruto, don't push yourself. I know you're hurt, we'll solve this later. Just rest for now," the water clone of Kakashi said in concern.

"No….H-How could you? HOW COULD YOU? You forgot all the training you gave me! Those two months we spent in Tsukiyomi! All those things you taught me! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" he yelled, using up his remaining energy before panting heavily. Kakashi's eyes softened when he noticed a fear tears slipping down the blonde's cheek while Itachi's face remained emotionless.

'_How could you do this Itachi-nii? I don't believe you, no matter what you say. The tears that I accidently noticed back then, the sorrowness I saw in your eyes at that time….was it, was it all a lie? Was Danzo playing with my emotions all the time? I…..don't believe this shit! I just…can't,'_ he thought as more tears glossed his vision.

"You are naive Naruto-kun. If someone shows you a shred of pity...even a hint that they care for you, if they share a smile with you, if they _teach _you something...you immediately trust them blindly. The world of shinobi does not work like that, it is not as bright as you think. You let your emotions guide you, and that's why...," Itachi paused as he closed his eyes making Kakashi narrow his eyes. Naruto however had his eyes widened as every word carved deep into his mind.

"That's why Naruto-kun, no matter how strong you get physically...as a shinobi, you will always be _weak_."

The blonde's eyes widened considerably as the last statement pierced his heart while Itachi opened his eyes to reveal the Mangekyou Sharingan making Kakashi's eyes widen.

"Aw Itachi, you broke the gaki's heart!" Kisame mocked with a grin when the Uchiha dashed towards Naruto- besides whom Kakashi's water clone was crouched- at blundering speeds.

SPLASH!

A water wall suddenly formed in front of Naruto making Itachi stop dead in his tracks, his lips curling just a little bit upwards in a smirk.

"It's nice to see you...Kushina-sensei," he spoke calmly when the large amount of water descended to show the standing form of the godaime Hokage in front of Naruto. Droplets of water due to the splash seemed to fog her form to Itachi, but he could clearly make out her icy cold violet eyes as she glared at him.

"Uchiha Itachi, what's the meaning of this?" she asked dangerously, her chakra levels already through the roof making Kisame whistle.

_'That's one hot red head for you.'_

_'Kushina-nee!'_ Kakashi thought in relief as he stared at her.

The Uchiha however, just chose to close his eyes again, not responding to her making Kushina clench her fists in anger. Slightly turning her head back, her cold eyes wavered a bit upon noticing the blonde laying on his stomach in his own pool of blood. Currently he was just staring sideways into nothing, as if shocked into the oblivion. Well, atleast he was still conscious. She was just about to call him when they heard Itachi's voice.

"What did you think earlier Naruto-kun? Didn't you think it strange, that Kisame, an S-ranked criminal, one of the seven swordsman of the mist would willingly become a spy for _Konoha_. Didn't you think it strange, from your point of view, as to why Kisame would help me? It's not like we are close friends or anything, but considering your naive thinking, I presume you must have thought so back then."

"You make me sad Itachi, I really thought we were best friends," Kisame interrupted with mock sadness in his tone whereas Kushina and Kakashi continued to stand their grounds. Ignoring Kisame yet again, Itachi continued to speak while staring at Naruto's motionless body.

"Didn't you find it strange that we let Orochimaru escape that day so easily. Even though he's proficient in the art of camouflaging with his surroundings, with sensory abilities of Kisame's Samehada and my Sharingan, he couldn't have gotten away from us."

"What are you implying?" Kakashi asked, getting interested in what the Uchiha was saying, it did make sense actually.

"What he means to say is that if we really would have been the good guys you believed us to be, if we really were spies for the sandaime Hokage and were helping Konoha...then we would have eliminated that snake that day. And because of that, the invasion would've never happened," Kisame spoke with a serious expression this time while Kakashi's eyes widened in realisation whereas Kushina found herself confused about this situation. She didn't know what was going on here, why was Naruto laying there in his own pool of blood or why Itachi and Kisame were acting like this. However, years of experience made her stay calm and patient about the situation right now.

"Then you mean to say that Danzo was just using you two as puppets to keep track of Akatsuki's movements? If so, then why would he let Orochimaru get away?"

"Hai, but by controlling us, Danzo achieved much more than that. Before Orochimaru deflected from Konoha, he teamed up with Danzo and planted those shodaime's cells in his body," Itachi answered in a monotone voice when Kushina asked in shock.

"Danzo and Orochimaru are working together?" making him nod.

"Orochimaru attacking team seven in the forest of death, then we- under the control of Danzo appearing there making Orochimaru flee. It was all a part of their plan to win Naruto's trust, possibly awaken his Rinnegan and getting my foolish little brother- a sharingan source for Orochimaru- under control using the curse mark. Via Orochimaru, Danzo later tried to control Naruto, whom he considers as a weapon, by placing the curse mark on him during the preliminaries. But apparently, as you know, that failed. Orochimaru later took Sasuke as planned by both of them. Now as reported by Zetsu, Danzo had at some point put Roshi-the yonbi jinchuriki, under Koto Amatsukami after Iwa had agreed with the yondaime Kazekage's offer. And later he made Roshi train Sabaku no Gaara in controlling his bijuu in Otogakure, hence the reason for the ichibi jinchuriki's drastic increase in strength so that later he could help with the invasion. During the invasion, Danzo and his Root Anbu hid in the underground while Orochimaru headed the invasion as planned," Itachi finished while Kushina stood frozen in shock whereas Kakashi, somehow coming over his own bundle of mind boggling surprises- asked in suspicion.

"Why would Danzo, who wanted to become the Hokage, would try to destroy Konoha? Orochimaru I can understand, but there's no way he would ever do that."

"Even I don't know what goes inside his head, but I have a theory. Danzo planned for Orochimaru to invade Konoha for the exact same reason you mentioned- to become the Hokage. By having the sandaime get killed by Orochimaru, he would've became the godaime Hokage through voting and the recommendation of the fire daimyo, using Koto Amatsukami ofcourse. But Naruto became a big wrench in his plans. By saving the sandaime Hokage, he ruined Danzo's plans. Because now Sarutobi Hiruzen was alive, he could either resume his duties as the Hokage, or name his successor...Danzo was definitely not on that list. And that's why, Kushina-sensei here became the godaime Hokage," the Uchiha finished as a wind flew by their stationary forms. Kakashi now was feeling that Itachi really was saying the truth, all that he had said seemed to be logical and evidential.

"But why would you tell this to us? It seems as though you want us to eliminate him for you guys," Kakashi uttered in a stern voice making Kisame snort in amusement while Itachi replied calmly.

"Akatsuki already wanted Orochimaru dead. And now with Danzo teaming up with him, it's better if Konoha kills him before he causes any real trouble to our goals. Who knows, he may use Koto Amatsukami on other of our members?" Kushina seemed to be deep in thought, but still on high alert as she mulled over the fact that Danzo really had teamed up with Orochimaru. Kakashi however felt a headache approaching, he had never thought things could turn out this way. Things just seemed to be getting worse not only for Naruto, but also for Konoha. Kakashi and Kushina however both tensed when Itachi took a step forward on the water.

"Now that our conversation is over, I would advice you to hand Naruto-kun over to us Kushina-sensei," he verbalized making Kushina stare at him as if he was crazy.

"You really think I would do that? Not in a million years!" she exclaimed loudly with a serious expression while Naruto continued to lay there motionless.

"If you don't, a lot of blood will be shed. We will go to any lengths to get what we want, even if it means destroying Konoha in the process. Would you be willing to risk so much Kushina-sensei?" he asked when the red head narrowed her eyes.

"I would NEVER leave Naruto, EVER!" the ferocity of her gaze, the way she roared surprised even Kakashi.

"So you're choosing one person over an entire village? I wonder if they made the right choice in making you the Hokage," Kisame articulated with a grin making Kushina glare at him.

"He's not just any person sharkface, he's my SON! And if it ever comes to choosing between Konoha and Naruto, I'll step down as the Hokage and fight to protect my Naruto," Kushina said while Kisame's eyebrows twitched at his nickname.

"I see then," Itachi muttered as he closed his eyes, his lips curled a bit upwards...did he seem to be a smiling a bit?

Kakashi eyes however widened when Itachi snapped opened his eyes to reveal the Mangekyou Sharingan yet again as he stared into Kushina's violet ones.

"Don't stare into his eyes!" Kakashi yelled making Kushina's eyes widen.

"**Tsukiyo-**"

Suddenly Itachi felt a weak invisible force hit him, making him skid a bit across the water, disrupting the execution of his technique.

"I can't believe that gaki's still conscious," Kisame spoke in an impressed tone as all of them turned their heads to stare at Naruto, who currently had his arm outstretched in the direction of Itachi as he panted heavily, blood streaming down his chin.

"Naruto!" Kushina exclaimed sternly in a mixture of anger and concern for him.

"Don't push yourself!" the blonde however stared at Itachi as his eyes began to close.

"I...don't believe you," were the last words he spoke before losing consciousness making Kushina bite her lower lip. Her heart was being torn apart at seeing him in such a sight.

"Kakashi, take Naruto to the hospital at once!" Kushina ordered with authority making the jounin nod when Kisame intervened.

"You really think we would let you?" a large grin on his face as he pointed the wrapped Samehada at Kushina.

"And you really think we would let you capture Naruto-kun," came a voice as five blurry figures landed in front of Kushina.

"Oh, reinforcements eh?" Kisame spoke with an excited grin while Itachi deactivated his Sharingan whereas Kakashi had already left the area with Naruto.

The five figures however revealed to be Gai, Asuma, Hana, Yugao and Kurenai, all having deep frowns on their faces.

"Itachi! What's the meaning of this?" Hana growled in anger.

"Let's leave Kisame. We've already done what we came for," Itachi spoke making everyone present narrow their eyes at him while Kisame nodded as they shunshined out of there.

"We have to follow them!" Kurenai exclaimed when Kushina suddenly intervened.

"DON'T! The only thing you'll succeed is in killing yourselves!" her voice sharp as she stood there.

"But-"

"THIS IS AN ORDER!" her voice booming throughout the area as Kushina glared at them, her fists clenched before she shunshined away while Asuma just sighed.

"She's in a real bad mood," he muttered, lighting his cigarette while Kurenai, Hana and Yugao seemed to be frowning.

"Such unyouthfulness," Gai spoke with an uncharacteristic sigh, for once at a normal decibel level when Yugao said quietly.

"I'm gonna check up on Naruto-kun's condition," before vanishing in a puff of smoke followed by Kurenai and Hana.

**Konoha's General Hospital**

"Where is Naruto?" the recipient there almost squeaked in response when Kushina's loud voice echoed through the hall and the corridors, who currently was standing in front of her with her hands on the desk. She seemed to be in one hell of a hurry, but the recipient knew what was going on considering Kakashi had just appeared a few minutes ago with a bloody Naruto in his arms.

It was ironic how medics had rushed to treat him, when in the past they would just ignore it like nothing happened.

"H-Hokage-sama...," she trailed in surprise while Kushina growled as a huge killer intent washed over the lobby.

".HE?" she all but yelled in impatience, her cold violet eyes piercing through the frail civilian recipient.

"S-Second F-Floor...ICU," she stuttered as Kushina vanished in a flash, making all the papers fly off the desk while the recipient sighed in relief as she wiped the sweat off her brow.

**Second Floor**

Kakashi was sitting outside the Intensive Care Unit, its red light activated above the closed door when suddenly Kushina appeared in a puff of smoke.

"Kakashi, how is he?" she almost screamed in urgency as the masked nin lifted his head to stare at her. She knew how much damage Naruto had done to his body during the invasion, most of his muscles were torn or were under extreme strain. She knew how Ayumi had worked day and night to first heal his chakra reserves, atleast the minimum amount of chakra necessary for his body to function- his life force.

But now, she didn't know the complete extent of his injuries, but seeing him laying in his own pool of blood indicated it was critical. Ayumi had already used too much youki from trying to heal him earlier, Kushina knew that she wouldn't be able to use her youki again as that would only further damage his chakra coils.

"He's in a critical condition Kushina-nee. You know Sasori of the red sand right? The S-rank missing nin of Suna?" he asked making a soft impatient growl escape her lips.

"What does that have to do with the present condition here!" she asked aggressively while the copy nin seemed to be unfazed by her outburst as he replied calmly.

"The kunai that Itachi stabbed Naruto with, was coated with the poison created by Sasori. You how dangerous his poisons are right?" Kushina clenched her fists as she closed her eyes, trying to force back her tears.

_'C'mon, how can you cry Kushina? You're the Hokage now dammnit! Control yourself!'_ she mentally spoke to herself, but knowing that Naruto- her baby, the one she loved the most in the world was suffering...it felt like she herself was dying out here.

"There's only so much Kyuubi's youki can do. It may heal the physical wound caused by the kunai, but the poison that is in his body requires Kyuubi to flush out its youki throughout his chakra circulatory system to completely destroy it, but this time it would further damage him. This time, it comes to solely on the medics to treat him," he uttered gravely as Kushina just sat down besides him, putting her palms on her face as she tried to control herself.

It didn't matter if his DNA had changed, he still was her son- her baby boy. Their relation was complex, he was also her lover. But still, she couldn't forget the time she had carried him for ten months, the time he would kick her stomach from the inside lightly whenever she laughed, she knew he liked to see her smile. He was her bundle of joy, one that held her heart. She still remembered his face when he was born on that night, those adoring light whisker marks on his soft chubby cheeks, the little tuff of his sun kissed blonde hair on his head, the cute yawn that escaped his pink lips, that peaceful expression on his face, the way his little fingers and toes curled and uncurled- right at that moment she knew that he was the most precious thing to her in the world, that she would forever love him.

_'That I would protect him from everything that was a harm to him,' _she thought as an inaudible choked sob escaped her lips which Kakashi didn't miss as he too sat with a forlorn look on his face.

POOF!

He lifted his head when Hana, Kurenai and Yugao arrived via shunshin, they too having concerned looks on their faces.

"What's his condi-" Hana paused when she noticed the way both of them were sitting.

"Kakashi, how is he doing?" Yugao asked softly as the jounin informed them of the present condition, not surprised to see the worried looks in their eyes. He knew they loved Naruto, it was not a hidden fact anymore.

"Nee-chan, I'm sure he would be alright," Hana spoke in a comforting tone as she put her hand on Kushina's shoulder. Lifting her face, Hana noticed a lone tear stream down her cheek, her eyes pearly due to the tears as she suddenly hugged Hana tighty.

Kushina knew that she was the Hokage, that she should stay strong and not break like this, but she was also a mother. When it came to Naruto, she just couldn't control herself...no matter how hard she tried to compose herself, he was her weakness, and at the same time- her strength.

Kurenai and Yugao too stared at her in sadness as they stood still, not knowing what to do in this situation. They felt helpless, all they could do was wait and pray that he would be alright.

All of them turned their heads when Jiraiya and Hiruzen arrived via shunshin, a panicked look on the sanin's face.

"Kushina what happened? I heard that Kisame and Itachi had arrived in the village. And why is Naruto injured again!" Jiraiya asked questions in quick succession when Kakashi stood up with a sigh while Kushina just buried her face into Hana's shoulder.

"Alright Jiraiya-sama, sandaime-sama...what I'm about to tell you stays with us," Kakashi said as he went through a few hand seals, activating the sound barrier while Kurenai applied a high level genjutsu on the group.

"Kakashi, what is going on?" Sarutobi asked with a serious expression while the medics continued to treat Naruto.

**Twenty Minutes Later**

"Oh Kami..." Hiruzen muttered in shock as he stood there stunned, not believing his ears while Jiraiya had his eyes narrowed.

"I never thought Danzo would go to such lengths," the sandaime spoke while Kurenai, Hana and Yugao too looked flabbergasted at the unexpected turn of events.

"Still, he could be bluffing to throw us off guard," Jiraiya muttered while Kushina, who was still sitting seemed to be staring at the floor; as if in trance.

"No, I don't think he would be lying to us because during the one month gap between the second part of chunin exams and the final exams, Danzo wasn't in the village. And even during the invasion, nobody saw Danzo, not even one of his Root anbu were spotted by any of our ninja," Sarutobi said further pushing the fact that Danzo was controlling Itachi while Kakashi deactivated the barrier along with Kurenai dispelling the genjutsu.

"So what do we do from now? What abo-" Kakashi was interrupted when suddenly the door was opened as an aged medic came out, the red light turning off signifying that the operation was over.

"How is he?" Kushina suddenly stood up, a concerned expression on her face taking the others by a bit of surprise. For the last twenty or so minutes, she had not uttered even a single word. Seeing the down look on the medics face, she started considering the worst but immediately shook her head to get rid of such ridiculous thoughts.

"How is he Ahora-san?" Hiruzen asked calmly, but you could see the concern in his eyes.

"Sandaime-sama, we have treated the physical wound. It was easy to do that considering his...enhanced healing rates. But what's critical is the internal damage that the poison is causing. Unfortunately, we don't have the antidote, nor any of us seem to know how to make one for it. It seems very complex...none of us have any idea on wha-"

"I don't CARE what you say. There has got to be any way to get rid of that poison, you guys are the best medics we have in the village currently!" Kushina exclaimed loudly after grabbing his white coat.

"H-Hokage-sama, I...I'm sorry b-but...," he trailed as she tightened the grip on him with a snarl.

"Tsunade," everyone snapped their heads towards Jiraiya, who had a serious expression on his face.

"What?" Hiruzen asked while looks of realisation dawned on the faces of everyone else whereas Jiraiya inwardly rolled his eyes at Sarutobi.

_'Yeah, sensei really is getting old...hearing impairment I guess.'_

"Kushina, you spoke earlier that we would bring Tsunade back, now's the time. She's our definite best bet, the only one who can cure Naruto right now," the sanin spoke seriously as Kushina loosened her hold on the medic's coat, her eyes now hopeful.

Sighing to herself, she turned her head to look at the aged medic with a guilty look in her eyes.

"I'm sorry for that oji-san," she muttered making the medic look at her flabbergasted, infact the others too found themselves stunned at this.

The HOKAGE was apologising to him, how big was that.

"I-It's fine H-Hokage-sama," he stuttered in an unsure voice while she nodded, her gaze on the floor before moving forward to bypass him.

_'I'm so gonna boast to my grandkids that how Hokage-sama apologized to their old man,'_ he thought with a silly expression as he walked through the corridor.

"She sure is unpredictable," Hiruzen spoke with a sigh.

"Yeah, just like her son," Kakashi muttered under his mask as they entered the room too.

Meanwhile inside ICU ward, Kushina immediately rushed to Naruto's side, who currently was unconscious, but the pale colour of his skin explained the seriousness of the situation while the remaining medics exited the room quietly.

"Naru-kun...," she muttered in concern as the blonde laid there unconscious, bandages wrapped around his mid section as his spiky blonde locks pointed in all directions, messier than usual. Grabbing hold of his hands, she cringed upon noticing how cold they were. Squeezing his hand tighter, she began to graze his forehead and scalp lovingly as she stared at him.

"Kushina, we have to take him to Tsunade," she turned her head in surprise upon hearing what Jiraiya had said while Kurenai, Hana and Yugao too walked to the other side of his bed quickly.

"He doesn't look good," Kurenai spoke softly as she held his hand, her voice wavering a bit while Hana and Yugao too gazed at him with worry reflecting in their eyes.

"What do you mean Jiraiya? Why not just bring Tsunade here?" Kushina asked in a dangerous tone making the sanin narrow his eyes.

"There's not enough time to bring her back! The best thing is to take Naruto there as fast as possible!" he exclaimed quickly making Kushina's eyes widen, it was rare for Jiraiya to panick like this. Seeing Naruto like this must have disturbed him too.

"I'm taking him with me," he said finally with a serious expression while Hiruzen nodded with him.

"Then I'll go too," Kushina immediately uttered with finality.

"You can't Kushina. You're the Hokage, the village needs you, especially when we are at our weakest," Sarutobi verbalized in a calm manner making the red head clench her fists as she gritted her teeth in frustration. Seeing the fire queens about to speak, he immediately intervened.

"Nor can any of you, we need all our forces with us at this critical time when the enemy can strike anytime. Jiraiya will be able to protect Naruto-kun easily, he's not a sanin for nothing," making them sigh in sadness as they looked at Naruto.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't let anyone touch him," the toad sage said with conviction in his voice, his tone dead serious. Right then fire queens knew that this was the real Jiraiya, the toad sage; and not some perverted idiot.

Turning her head to look at the unconscious blonde, Kushina squeezed his hand tighter as she stared at him for a few seconds. Kissing his hand tenderly, she gently rested it back against his chest before standing.

"Falcon!" she exclaimed as an Anbu wearing a falcon mask appeared in a blur to knee behind her.

"Hai Hokage-sama," he responded in a monotone voice as she turned around from the bed to face him.

"Find and inform Hyuuga Hinata to pack for a mission immediately and report to the north gate in one hour. If asked, just tell that it is extremely urgent, related to Uzumaki Naruto and that the details of the mission have to be kept secret, no one is to know about this except her...not even Hiashi. Now go!" she ordered as the Anbu shunshined out with a nod while Hiruzen looked at her in surprise.

"You're sending a genin with me?" Jiraiya asked in shock while the fire queens were equally shocked too whereas Kushina started to walk towards the door.

"No longer a genin, she's a chunin now. Besides, her Toyotama Byakugan will make finding Tsunade that much easier, add to the fact that when it comes to Naru-kun, she's a whole new person- a deadly force to deal with."

"Where are you going now Kushina?" Hiruzen asked her in confusion.

"There's another person I want to send on this mission. Pack up Jiraiya, you guys are leaving with Naruto in an hour," she replied in a low tone before leaving the room.

_'Come to think of it, I haven't seen or heard from Danzo since the invasion, we'll have to investigate this matter at once,'_ Sarutobi thought with a serious expression as he stared at Naruto's unconscious face.

**Almost One Hour Later: Konoha's North Gate**

Appearing via shunshin with Naruto in his arms, Jiraiya noticed the other two members for this mission standing besides Kushina there while the gate was being repaired by the construction workers.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed wide eyed as she saw his unconscious body and the pale skin, he absolutely didn't look any better.

"H-Hokage-sama, what happened to him?" Hinata asked as she stood in front of Jiraiya, her eyes filled with concern as she gazed at the object of her admiration and affection.

"What happened to the shithead? He was all up and running this morning like a sucker on high sugar," one red head spoke with a frown when a huge amount of killer intent was aimed at her. Turning her head with a gulp, she inwardly shuddered at the way Kushina was glaring at her.

"Care to repeat that Tayuya?" she asked, her Sharingan flashing to life as the two black tomoes spun around her pupil.

"G-Gomen Hokage-sama," she replied softly, completely uncharacteristic of her usual 'Ain't taking any shit' personality. She may act bitchy towards everyone except Kin, but she knew this was not the time to play around. Kushina was the blonde's mother who currently was suffering due to an unknown poison in his body, and obviously she was in a .mood. And even she knew not to provoke the likes of short tempered kage level kunoichi like Kushina.

_'How did I get myself into this again? Oh yeah...,'_ she thought with a sigh as memories of what just transpired an hour ago returned to her.

**Flashback: Almost an Hour Ago: Konoha's General Hospital**

Currently Tayuya was sitting on the bed as she stared through the window, into the blue sky. She had, for Kin, decided to stay in Konoha and become a kunoichi here, where nobody would consider them as slaves.

_'I wonder how my life here would be?'_ she pondered with a sigh, her facial features relaxed as she found herself at peace in this isolation for now.

She turned her head when the door was slid open for Kushina to enter her room.

"You?" she verbalized in surprise, her relaxed features immediately moulding into that of her usual frown while Kushina had a serious expression on her face as she neared the kunoichi.

"Earlier you spoke that you wanted to join Konoha. I said then that you were not trustworthy enough as you were only willing to do that because of Kin. Well now, you have a chance to prove your loyalty. Right this moment, I'm assigning you as a leaf shinobi, a genin to start with even though I know you're most probably at a low to mid jounin level right now. There's this extremely important mission that I want to send you on along with Jiraiya of the legendary sanin and a Hyuuga. I believe that your skills with genjutsu, and the experience you gained while being in Oto makes you an optimum candidate for this mission. This will be an A-rank mission and it's details will be explained to you by Jiraiya on your way for we're in a hurry right now. And don't worry, I will inform Kin later on," Kushina spoke in one breath while Tayuya just blinked, a 'WTF' expression on her face when the godaime pulled the left sleeve of her tight dark blue vest, which was hugging all her curves and at the same time; exposing some cleavage.

Going through a few one handed signs, she put her chakra laced index finger on her exposed forearm, muttering a quiet 'Kai' while Tayuya looked in confusion when her eyes widened.

Slowly, several small square boxes (black outline) started appearing on her forearm, covering it completely (Just imagine a printed keyboard on her skin, boxes being the keys). Each of those boxes were glowing a light shade of blue while Kushina seemed to be gazing at them, as if searching for something with her Sharingan activated.

"W-What the fuck is that?" Tayuya asked dumbfounded, she had never seen such a thing.

"There are almost fifty storage seals on my forearm right now, and a size compression seal on them to make them extremely small and take less space. So to read this micro caligraphy, I need the Sharingan to atleast get the idea of what is stored in each of these seals. Furthermore, the- ahh! Here it is," Kushina mumbled, all the while keeping her eyes on her forearm as if she was speaking involuntarily making Tayuya sweatdrop.

Putting her index finger on one of the boxes, she again muttered kai while channeling a bit more of her chakra. A puff of smoke suddenly erupted to reveal a normal sized scroll which Kushina caught before throwing it towards Tayuya.

"This is a normal storage seal, in this is the emergency mission package kit, something designed to act as an emergency mission packup for shinobi who need to go on a high ranking mission immediately without having the time to pack for that mission manually. It contains all the basic necessities of a size-adjustable pair of jounin uniforms, food and chakra pills, ration bars, first aid kit, kunai, shuriken, ninja wires, a two person tent, two sleeping bags and other stuff required for high ranking missions," she explained while Tayuya gawked at the little scroll in her hands, she had no idea such things existed.

"Also, your gear is in this cabinet besides me. As for your flute, when you meet me at the north gate in an hour, I'll give it you. So get up, warm up, do whatever you need to do but be there on time," Kushina ordered before turning around as she started to walk towards the door while Tayuya just sat there dumbfounded.

"Oh, and Tayuya, this is your first mission under the hitai-ate of Konoha, I wish you luck," she spoke with a small smile reflecting of the glass in the door before exiting the room while Tayuya found herself speechless.

**Flashback Ends**

"Alright, listen up," Jiraiya spoke in a serious tone, snapping Hinata out of her worried gaze and Tayuya from her thoughts.

"You two will go forward with a shadow clone of mine at full speed. He will explain the details of this mission. I will follow you guys, but at a slow pace considering I can't go too fast with Naruto with me because of the poison," he uttered making Hinata's eyes widen at the mention of poison while Tayuya just narrowed her eyes. Creating a seal less shadow clone, Jiraiya turned to Kushina while Hinata, glancing worriedly at Naruto for the last time- proceeded to follow the Jiraiya's clone and Tayuya.

"Kushina, don't worry...I'll definitely bring him back as good as new. That's a promise!" he exclaimed with a silly grin on his face making the Hokage nod at him with a hesitant smile. Walking closer to him, Kushina gazed at Naruto as she cupped his whiskered cheek lovingly. Leaning down, she kissed his cheek gently.

"You'd better return to me Naru-kun," she whispered softly in his ear with a smile before pulling back.

"Why didn't Nai-chan, Yugao-chan and Hana-chan come?" she asked in confusion when Jiraiya smirked lecherously.

"Don't worry, they've already wished Naruto luck back in the hospital," winking at her, he blurred out with a gust of wind.

"Ero-baka," she muttered in exasperation with a lightly flushed face before turning around to gaze in the direction of where they had left.

_'Please return to me...to us Naru-kun,'_ the godaime Hokage thought as she stood at the entrance of Konoha.

**Meanwhile: Unknown Location: Hi no Kuni**

Looking at the glowing seal on the palm of her hand, Mei sighed to herself as she kept walking along with Ao and Choujiro- both of them looking at her with concerned faces.

"Something wrong Mizukage-sama?" Ao asked making Mei shake her head as she closed her palm.

Her stomach was twisting in a painful way as she glanced in the direction of Konoha backwards. For the past hour or so, the seal had been glowing brighter and brighter.

_'I hope you're alright Naruto-kun,'_ she thought in concern.

**Lol, hope you liked this chapter! Ah, there's one interesting thing that I wanted to inform you people. In the summary, when I mentioned- ****What if it was a plan all along to awaken his bloodline?**

**I never spoke it was the Sandaime's plan to awaken it in the summary. So after reading this chapter, you can see that-as said by Itachi- it was in reality Danzo's plan too to awaken to it. So it's upto you guys to think if what Itachi said was true or not, I'm not gonna reveal anything ;)**

**Also, I wanted to inform you guys that I'm finished with the plot of this fic, so I know how it's gonna end and you don't have to worry about writer's block in this fic's case. Also don't worry, this fic is not going to be ending anytime soon, it's a long way from that actually. And I think you're gonna absolutely love the plot and twists that are gonna bust your brain! :D**

**IMPORTANT ****(for me atleast)- As some of you know, and others don't know (lol), I recently released a fic 'The Jinchuriki's Note' (NarutoxDeath Note crossover). If you have watched death note, then I'd recommend you read it. It's first chapter may not be much, but I assure it's gonna get better, real better (so put it into your alerts if you want). So those who liked this fic, 'The Burdened Deathcake' and the other two one-shots, give this one a read, believe me on this. **

**I'm mainly doing this as that fic has not gotten any hits until now, around 600 only in four days, so I think people are not giving this a try in the first place. That's why, I want you guys to try. But no pressure from me, if don't want to...then I understand and it's perfectly fine. :)**

**Anyway, please review , I'm not getting much per chapter as compared to before. Also, thanks to those who are reviewing, for their constructive criticism and their ideas. So see you next chapter, ja ne! **

**N6023**


	37. He Was Alive!

**Sorry for the late update guys, but here's the next chapter-**

**Chapter-37**

Looking at the glowing seal on the palm of her hand, Mei sighed to herself as she kept walking along with Ao and Choujiro- both of them looking at her with concerned faces.

"Something wrong Mizukage-sama?" Ao asked making Mei shake her head as she closed her palm.

Her stomach was twisting in a painful way as she glanced in the direction of Konoha backwards. For the past hour or so, the seal had been glowing brighter and brighter.

_'I hope you're alright Naruto-kun,'_ she thought in concern.

**Meanwhile: With Jiraiya**

_'Damn you Itachi! I don't know what to believe right now. Is this really the work of Danzo? Well I wouldn't put it past the war hawk. But still, Koto Amatsukami...does such a technique even exist? Over the years though, I have learned not to underestimate the Sharingan,'_ Jiraiya thought as he kept jumping through trees as smoothly as possible so as to not let the poison spread in Naruto's body, using chakra under his feet to increase his speed as well cushion the impacts.

The blonde currently was unconscious, a painful expression on his face while his skin seemed to be paler than before.

_'Don't you dare die kid. Kushina's not going to spare me, and neither would Tsunade. Well I guess you'll be finally able to see your godmother, and she doesn't even know that you and Kushina are alive. Sensei really is in trouble,'_ he mused with a light smile as he continued to dash through the trees while almost a mile in front of him were Hinata and Tayuya accompanying his clone.

Jiraiya knew where to find Tsunade, just before coming to village today morning, his spies had luckily informed him of Tsunade's current location as he and Kushina were planning to bring her back to Konoha anyway. So currently they were heading off to Tanzaku town, and the toad sanin was not so surprised to hear about her location considering that town was one of the famous gambling spots in the whole Hi no Kuni.

_'With the speed at which we're going, we should be there in about two hours. The sun is setting down now, I hope she doesn't leave that town today.'_

**Inside Naruto's Mindscape**

Currently we find Ayumi sitting in a cave in a large tree's trunk, just like the one during the second part of chunin exams where team seven had rested. Naruto was resting in her lap, unconscious as here too he looked to be in pain with his skin pale. Outside it was raining, not surprising considering it was Naruto's mindscape and the weather changed with his emotions.

And Ayumi knew after what he had just beared, he was more emotionally hurt than physically.

_'Hang on Naruto-kun, I'm sure that Tsunade will be able to find a cure for that poison. I've done all I could, your physical injury is already healed and your own chakra is currently preventing the poison from spreading. It's only upto that pervert sanin, Hinata and the other one to make sure you reach there in time,'_ the bijuu thought in concern as she flowed her hands through his blonde spiky hair, a concerned expression on her face. Currently she had her warm tails wrapped around his body as she tightly hugged the blonde's head to her chest.

She knew how much it had affected Naruto this time. Time and time again, he was constantly betrayed in his life. The boy had really come to admire Itachi just like Sasuke did, and she failed to understand what was currently going on.

She didn't know whether to believe what Itachi had said or not.

_'Naruto doesn't have complete control over me yet. If he had complete access to my chakra, he instantly would have been able to sense if there were any negative emotions being radiated off that Uchiha,'_ she thought with a sigh as the rain started to get heavier while the blonde's body was currently cold.

_'I hope he takes this well. Itachi being controlled at that time is something I never thought of possible, but if the Uchiha can control even the strongest bijuu like me, it's definitely not impossible,'_ she pondered while cupping the blonde's cheek gently.

"I hope this event doesn't change you Naruto-kun. I love you very much as the way you are. But even if you change, I will always remain by your side, I wouldn't ever leave you. You are my lifeline, it is your smile which brighten's my day, it is that silly grin of yours that makes me feel like the luckiest bijuu of all, the luckiest woman alive. Please be the same Uzumaki Naruto I know you are, the one who gave me the will to live, the one who freed me from darkness, or who knows...I may have had given into my hatred and this evil chakra of mine. You're the only one I'll ever love...Naruto-koi," she spoke softly as a few tears streamed down her cheeks while she hugged him tightly to her; sad that the blonde had to struggle so much in his life, that how almost everyone seemed to break his trust again and again. All in all, she knew that this event would bring a drastic change in the blonde- and only time would tell if it would be for the better...or worse.

**With Hinata, Tayuya and Jiraiya's Clone**

"Oi! Will you now tell me where we are going bird shit?" Tayuya asked with a frown as currently they were blurring through the dense foliage.

The clone's eyes however started to twitch at the comment about his hair color, it was not bird shit dammit!

"Tanzaku town," the sanin simply replied as he momentarily glanced sideways at the Hyuuga hieress, who not so surprisingly had not spoken even a single word since they had started on their mission- to say of sorts. But he was surprised to see the fire in her eyes, the ferocity in her gaze as she kept her eyes forward; her Byakugan activated while the hieress constantly checked their surroundings.

"Found something kid?" he asked with a serious expression while she just shook her head, her primitive Byakugan activated since the beginning of their journey.

"You okay Hinata?" Jiraiya asked again with a sigh. He knew how much the Hyuga hieress cared for his godson, and for her to act all quiet and calm disturbed the sanin a bit.

"Hai," her voice strong and resolute as she kept moving forward, putting as much chakra as she could beneath her feet, moving as fast as she could.

"I have to save Naruto-kun, I wouldn't let anything happen to him!" she exclaimed with narrowed eyes.

"Correction, we wouldn't let anything happen to him," the clone answered with a smirk making her nod while Tayuya rolled her eyes, just behind them.

_'What's up with her? Just like Kin-chan, she too seems to have hots for that blondie. What's so special about that shithead? All he does is grin like an idiot, goes out of the hospital when clearly he hasn't recovered yet and then comes back with an uncurable poison flooding the fucker's system,'_ the red head thought with a shrug. She didn't care all that much for the unconscious blonde, heck she didn't even know him. The first time she had seen him was in the hospital earlier today and that was that. She felt a little grateful that he was the one who had pulled her back during the invasion when Kidomaro had rendered her unconscious, but other than that; there was nothing else.

She was doing this mission only because of Kin, and because that now she was a Konoha ninja- she had to do some missions to support herself and her best friend/sister.

"Jiraiya-sama, what happened to Naruto-kun?" Hinata finally asked, the concern reflecting in her voice as the three figures continued to blur through the forest.

"I can't reveal to you yet kid. What happened back in Konoha has been classified as a forbidden secret by the Hokage. However, if Naruto decides to tell you...well that's another story now," he answered with a grim look on his face making her bite her lower lip.

_'I wouldn't let Naruto-kun die, we have to find Tsunade-sama as soon as possible. That poison I checked earlier with my Toyotama Byakugan, it's affecting his chakra circulatory system continuously. And even though his own chakra is holding it off, it wouldn't be able to last for much longer,'_ the Hyuga hieress pondered, solely concentrated on her mission, and on the object of her affection.

**Roughly Two Hours Later: Tanzaku Town: 8 PM**

"This is the Tanzaku town. Let's split up and start searching for her. I assume both of you know how Tsunade looks?" the Jiraiya's clone asked with a raised eyebrow making Hinata, who was standing besides him nod while Tayuya 'hmph-ed' in response.

"Of course we would know bird shit, who wouldn't know the sanin?" she uttered while the trio currently stood on a high grounds as they stared at one of the most famous gambling towns in Hi no Kuni. It was a sight to behold as the town looked to be decorated for a festival eve, curtained with lights with fire crackers lighting up the sky as their rocketing whistles echoed throughout the bustling town into its cliffy outskirts.

Meanwhile, the clone however didn't know whether to take Tayuya's statement as an insult or a compliment as he sighed to himself in exasperation while Hinata looked to be deep in thought as she stared over the town.

"Let's just first enter the town, we'll then split from there," Jiraiya verbalized as they started to dash down the cliff using chakra beneath their feet to stick to the surface. Reaching the bottom they then blurred through the small bit of foliage, consequently entering the town as they now stood in a secluded area (the town's bordering area), behind a large warehouse which looked to be abandoned.

"Now you two know the drill, split up and search. And you brat, no slacking off," Jiraiya threatened with narrowed eyes while Tayuya just glared back at him, a low growl escaping her throat.

'_This motherfucker, who does he think I am? Ordering like I'm some kind of a sick genin who constantly messes things up, the bird shit should probably say this to that shithead back there….not me,'_ the ex-Oto kunoichi thought in anger but she just resorted to stay quiet for now, not in the least enjoying her current company. She could feel that the sanin didn't trust her, and the Hyuga right now had a one track mind-'Save shithead-kun'….as Tayuya would like to rephrase it.

She wouldn't admit to anyone, not even to Kin- but the red haired kunoichi had been secretly expecting to get to know each other in this mission, especially the Hyuga. She looked to be a nice person, though Tayuya would never admit that, even on her deathbed- but she was hoping to make another friend. However, with the mission affecting Hinata personally, she knew that she wouldn't be able get to know her. All her life in Oto, Kin was the only one she could befriend, she was her only support. But with a new start in Konoha, she was hoping to make more friends. But wherever she went….she could hear people murmuring that how she was previously working with Orochimaru and helped destroy their village.

She didn't know how they came to know that, or how they even knew of her considering the red head hadn't made that much of an appearance during the invasion- but they surely were keeping their distance away from her. It was just like in Oto, mind your own business and the life goes on. It was like- train everyday, serve Orochimaru and possibly one day die on the battlefield- that was her life, and it seemed it would remain as it is even now.

Just as Jiraiya and Tayuya were about to take off,

"Wait!" Hinata exclaimed making them look at her in confusion.

"Something wrong kid?" he asked while she looked to be contemplating something.

'_I haven't mastered it yet, but I have to use it now. We need to find her as fast as possible,' _she thought before nodding to herself mentally with determination.

"I'll find her with my Toyotama Byakugan, it'll be much faster," she spoke making Jiraiya's eyes narrow.

'_Toyotama…..Byakugan?'_ Tayuya thought in surprise, she had heard Orochimaru previously mention this name.

"Save it, you're getting in over your head. I know you care for the gaki, but that doesn't mean you have to try the impossible. I know your Toyotama Byakugan is special, but you can't possibly hope to find her in between thousands of people. Besides your upgraded Byakugan can't possibly search the whole town, it doesn't have that much range. I know you'll only be trying to pump as much chakra as you can in your eyes, you'll achieve nothing but a severe case of chakra exhaustion and damaged optical chakra coils," he explained making Tayuya's eyes widen a bit in surprise.

'_So he does know his stuff. I see now, at first sight…he looks like an old goofball of a pervert. But that's just a part of his deception, underneath all that he is a sanin after all. Just due to his behavior and strange antics, almost everyone tends to forget that he's a kage level ninja. Heh, even I fell for that,'_ she thought with narrowed eyes while gazing at the sanin when she was brought out of her musings by Hinata.

"Don't underestimate me Jiraiya-sama. You might think that I will do stupid things just to save Naruto-kun. I may be the heiress of the Hyuga clan, I may love Naruto-kun…" Hinata said with a serious expression as she crouched down on one knee, activating her Toyotama Byakugan while Jiraiya looked at her perplexed whereas Tayuya was taken aback a bit, her first time seeing this new Byakugan.

'_Whoa…'_ the red head exclaimed mentally as she gazed at it, the two dark pink petals which were surrounding a sky blue pupil, the sclera still lavender at the bordering region while the earlier noticeable veins were no longer visible. Tayuya had to admit- it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen in her life.

'_What is she….?'_ the toad sanin thought while Hinata began to go through a couple of hand seals, ending on the ram hand seal before slamming her left hand on the ground- her right hand now forming the 'half-ram' seal.

"….but I'm not a princess who has fallen in love head over heels with the boy of her dreams. I'm a kunoichi, who has fallen in love with an amazing shinobi," she stated with a dead serious expression while Jiraiya's and Tayuya's eyes widened simultaneously.

On the ground, a large glowing circle had formed with the Hyuga's hand as the center; it's circumference now glowing blue in color.

"What are yo…" Jiraiya was flabbergasted as he stared at the large empty glowing circle, their faces now tinted blue due to the light while all three of them were standing inside the circle.

"Oi, w-what are you d-"

"**Uzume! **(Goddess of Mirth and Revelry)," Tayuya stopped abruptly when Hinata exclaimed a bit loudly while Jiraiya's eyes further widened when two petals started to originate from her hand on the ground. It continued to expand until it was touching the circumference of the circle as the petals now started to glow pink in colour. Basically, it was just the enlarged design of her current Toyotama Byakugan while the sanin and the red haired kunoichi stood there speechless.

"What is this?" Jiraiya now asked in a calm tone, quickly getting over his initial shock. He had loads of experience under his belt, and he knew that the world of shinobi never ceased to surprise even the most experienced ninja like him.

"One of the special techniques of Toyotama Byakugan I have been trying to perfect over the month. Now please let me concentrate," she spoke quietly making him nod while Tayuya started to walk away from them, intent on exiting the circle.

"And stay in the circle, I need the help of you two," the red head cursed inwardly as she entered back with a frown. Currently Hinata was facing forward, the petals now slowly revolving around her sky blue pupil continuously.

"Now, I need both of you to go through these hand signs in sequence: **Ushi** (Ox), **Inu** (Dog), **Dragon** (Tatsu), **Tora** (Tiger) and **Hitsuji** (Ram). Then maintain the hitsuji hand seal with one of your hands, keeping the other one on my shoulder. This will help us finding Tsunade-sama as quicky as possible, believe me on this," Hinata said seriously making Jiraiya sigh while Tayuya narrowed her eyes. Nodding to himself mentally, he went through the mentioned hand signs before putting his left hand on Hinata's left shoulder from behind, standing on her left side while Tayuya just stood there; a bit skeptical about this.

"What are you waiting for? We don't have much time," Jiraiya spoke with narrowed eyes while Hinata turned her head to look at Tayuya.

"Please Tayuya-san," she spoke softly with a small comforting smile taking the red head back in surprise. Seeing the pleading expression on her face, Tayuya nodded with an almost invisible smile of her own before she went through the hand seals before putting her right hand on Hinata's right shoulder.

"Now stay calm, you may feel a bit uneasy at first; but the feeling will eventually go away," she warned making both of them nod as the Hyuga closed her eyes. Jiraiya and Tayuya could now sense her chakra levels increasing as they waited in anticipation.

"**Shinto! **(Way of the Penitent God)" Hinata exclaimed as the petals started to revolve at a paster face around her sky blue pupils while the petals on the ground started to revolve too. The most noticeable change however was that the bulging veins had reappeared around her eyes just like in the case of the primitive Byakugan.

Jiraiya and Tayuya's eyes though widened in astonishment when they began to see everything around them in three sixty degrees. Not only were they able to see the whole three-sixty degrees, but also that the range of their vision had severely increased.

"W-What's this?" Tayuya spoke in an incredulous voice as she stood frozen there along with Jiraiya's clone. Everything was so clear, it was atleast five times more clear than her normal vision. Also, they could see almost the end of the whole town just standing there, penetrating walls and any kind of obstructions and could define most of the chakra signatures currently present in the Tanzaku town.

"I do not have time to explain things. I can only hold this technique for thirty seconds with two people sharing my Toyotama Byakugan, both of you have to hurry and find Tsunade-sama! The controls of your current vision are simple, to zoom in on anything- put more chakra in your eyes and to zoom out reduce the amount of chakra," Hinata spoke while herself scanning through the town.

"Got it!" Jiraiya and Tayuya exclaimed simultaneously as they started to search through their newly acquired vision, each of them concentrating in different directions.

'_Where are you Tsunade….at this time, you'll most probably be at a gambling spot, a bar or even a restaurant! Not here…..nope….woo__h__, now that's one hot babe…..not even here….where are you dammit….not th- hey wait! A pig, that breast size, another lady which must be Shizune…and that chakra signature has to be hers!'_

"Found her!" Jiraiya exclaimed as he lifted his hand off Hinata's shoulders with Tayuya doing the same while Hinata, released the ram seal as well as lifted her palm off the ground- ending the technique. She breathed a sigh of relief, panting a bit while wiping the sweat off her forehead.

"You okay kid?" Jiraiya asked in concern as he put a hand on her shoulder while Hinata nodded with a serious expression on her face.

"That was one hell of a technique, I'd give you that. I've never seen something like it in my whole career," he stated making her blush a bit in embarrassment while Tayuya could only mentally agree with the sanin.

"Hey! Why are you guys standing there! Did you find her already?" the trio turned their heads to see the 'real' Jiraiya land in front of them with Naruto unconscious in his arms, his skin tone appearing to be paler than before.

'_Naruto-kun….,'_ Hinata thought in concern as she gazed at the blonde laying in the toad sage's arms while the clone dispelled itself. Jiraiya's eyes widened as the memories rushed into his mind, he was specifically stunned at how they had found Tsunade. That technique was really something else, even the Inuzuka, the Aburame or any other Hyuuga couldn't have found Tsunade in such a populated town within a span of thirty seconds.

"Wow kid, I'm impressed," Jiraiya uttered with a whistle making Hinata now fidget a bit.

"Shouldn't we go now?" Tayuya asked in a bit of annoyance, they were just wasting time standing there.

"Here's the plan, you two go with my shadow clone and bring Tsunade here where I'll be waiting with Naruto," he said before creating a seal less shadow clone.

"Let's go!" the newly formed clone exclaimed as the trio dashed out of the secluded area, taking rooftops as their quickest route to the world's best medic.

'_Well this should be good, meeting the slug sanin,'_ Tayuya thought with a small smirk.

**An Unknown Restaurant: Tanzaku Town**

"Tsunade-sama, go easy. You don't want to get drunk again do you?" a black haired woman spoke worriedly, currently carressing a pig which was wearing a pearl necklace.

"Oh hush Shizune. I'll do whatever I want, it's not like I have a family waiting at the hotel room back there for me," Tsunade said with half lidded eyes as she gulped down another cup of sake, her cheeks now tinted pink in color. Shizune's eyes saddened at hearing that while the pig, Tonton on her lap 'oinked' in response.

"But Tsunade-sama, still that's no reason to do that to yourself almost everyday," she spoke in concern while the blonde medic just waved her hand lazily.

"Shizune, what do you think about today's offer?" Tsunade's facial expression suddenly then turned serious as she gazed at her cup while the black haired medic was taken aback by the sudden question. She knew the sanin was talking about that snake's offer. Truthfully, she thought it was ridiculous to even consider it, but she was aware of Tsunade's feelings on the matter.

"Tsunade-sama….I d-"

"TSUNADE!"

WHAM!

CRASH!

Everybody sat there on their table frozen as they stared at a panting, tall white haired man and immediately knew who he was.

"J-Jiraiya-sama?"

One of them exclaimed when a blue haired Hyuga and a red haired kunoichi entered the restaurant with the sanin.

"Oh there you are!" the clone exclaimed as he walked towards the table at the corner where his fellow sanin was currently sitting, her eyebrows twitching dangerously as she glared at the toad sage- mainly due to the nature of his entry, kicking the door only for it fly off it's hinges and crash into the concrete wall besides their table with its debris now covering their forms.

"Jiraiya," she growled with a dangerous glare while Shizune just coughed to get rid of the dust as she stood up to clear the table. Tsunade however slowly stood as she walked towards him at a slow threatning pace.

"What's the meaning of this? At what age do we learn to use the door properly?" she asked as the clone gulped, praying for it's short lived existence while Tayuya just sighed at their antics.

"Tsunade-sama! Please forgive Jiraiya-sama's clone! It's an emergency, we need your help!" turning her head, Tsunade lifted her eyebrows upon seeing a pretty indigo haired Hyuga who currently was sporting a panicked expression on her face. By her hitai-aite, she knew they were with Jiraiya.

"So sensei now sends my formal teammate and two genins to bring me back huh? Does he think I'm that easy," she spoke with a sigh while the customers sat there, not moving an inch as they waited for something to happen in anticipation. Here they were, with two sanins and a Hyuga bickering about something which could well be another one of their legendary deeds- well that's how civilians tended to think in most cases.

"Now listen here miss legendary sucker, we ain't here to tell you our sob story. We are on a mission here for you to heal some shithead, as simple as that. It doesn't matter if you wanna come back to the village or not. So flip, don't act like you're so special or something," Tayuya spoke loudly with her usual 'no-shit' frown while the restaurant succumbed to a pin drop silence with the sound of a bowl shattering on the floor interrupting it. Everyone remained in their places dumbfounded, their jaws on the floor as they stared owlishly at the red haired teen.

Jiraiya however was the most stunned one, his eyes wide in horror as he prayed for the girl's safety. Even he knew not to deliberately piss-off Tsunade, and especially not to call her the legendary sucker. Shizune and Hinata were equally astonished too as both of them gulped nervously when Jiraiya snapped his head to look at Tsunade who currently had her head lowered with her eyes being shadowed, a large vein throbbing on her forehead.

"You brat….," she growled as an evil grin spread across her face when she lifted her head to glare at Tayuya who looked to be unfazed and still had that scowl on her face.

"Yeah, so what? You angry? Big deal, you gonna now suck someone's cock?" she said, showing the blonde medic her middle finger making everyone's face there except Tsunade pale in terror while Jiraiya coughed loudly, his lips pursed tightly as he tried to hold in his laughter.

'_I gotta hand this over to you kid, you deserve the title of gutsy ninja. But damn this is funny!'_ he thought as he cleared his throat a bit loudly, desperately trying not to laugh.

"YOU'RE DEAD!" Tsunade yelled loudly with fury in her eyes as she charged chakra into her fist, prepared to knock the kid's head off. Tayuya, seeing the red signal, smirked to herself lightly which Hinata didn't fail to notice.

'_So that's what she was doing,'_ she thought in realization, her lips curling upwards as she dashed towards the exit.

"Let's go Tayuya-san!" she yelled over her shoulder when the red head too bolted out of the restaurant, putting as much chakra in her feet as she could.

"Oh no you don't! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" Tsunade growled loudly in rage as she blurred out of everyone's vision with the Jiraiya's clone sighing to himself.

'_She could've atleast told me about her plan. Oh well….it should work anyway,'_ he thought before turning towards a panicked Shizune who also was about to go after Tsunade.

"You better hurry," he simply spoke with a smirk before puffing into smoke while the black haired medic just opted to bolt out of there, offering an apology to the restaurant owner over her shoulder on the way- thinking of what the hell was going on. Suddenly Orochimaru had popped out of nowhere that day and now Jiraiya, something big was happening. They had heard about the rumors that Konoha had been attacked by Suna, Oto and Iwa and that it had prevailed with the support of the Raikage and Mizukage.

_'I don't like this.'_

**Meanwhile: On the rooftops of Tanzaku Town**

"That was really risky Tayuya-san! You shouldn't take unnecessary risks like that!" Hinata yelled as now both of them dashed in the direction of where the real Jiraiya with an unconscious Naruto currently were, with an enraged Tsunade on their tow.

"That was the only fucking way, and with the way that titty-fuck was acting, it was getting on my bitchin' nerves. Besides, we didn't have to chat and explain her everything! Damn that titty-fuck, she's extremely fast!" Tayuya answered as they blurred through the rooftops with their chakra-pumped feet.

"Come back here you bitch! I'm gonna clobber you!" Tsunade yelled while bolting towards them, her form barely visible to even Tayuya and Hinata.

"She's so gonna fuck us!" the red head exclaimed as she increased her speed furthermore, surprising Hinata this time that she could move this fast.

'_Kin-chan wasn't just bluffing when she spoke that Tayuya could be at a jounin level. Her speed right now rivals Naruto-kun's speed without using Kyuubi's chakra,'_ she thought before her eyes widened a bit, her Byakugan currently activated.

"JUST A LITTLE MORE TAYUYA-SAN!" she screamed making the red head nod, who now had left the Hyuga behind when Tsunade's form blazed past her too.

'_But still, Tsunade-sama is a sanin, she's much superior to us in every field,'_ she mentally noted with a serious expression, her first time seeing a legendary sanin in action; even if it was only her speed.

**Tanzaku Town: Jiraiya's Location**

Having gotten his clone's memories back, Jiraiya could only shake his head, but nevertheless couldn't help but be impressed by Tayuya. She had accessed the situation, and thinking quickly had acted on it. It took guts to challenge a kage level ninja like that. Actually, he was impressed with both the kunoichi's. Truly the next generation was something else.

'_Usually Tsunade would catch them easily, but the distance is not that much. So they should be able to guide her here,'_ he thought with Naruto laying on a blanket in front of a tree several meters behind him, still unconscious when he spotted a figure blurring towards him.

"HERE SHE COMES! YOU BETTER BE READY TO CALM HER DOWN BIRDSHIT!" Jiraiya's eyes again twitched at that nickname. He liked if someone called him pervert, he was proud of it. But this was something he couldn't appreciate, he was a sanin damn it!

Tayuya then landed in front of him before skidding on the ground; a small amount of panic in her eyes before they widened a bit when she saw his face and eyes.

"What the fuck happened to your face? You….you look like a motherfucking toad!" she pointed while pointing her index finger at him.

"If you wanna escape Tsunade's wrath and live to see another day, I would advice that you get behind me," Jiraiya uttered with a serious expression as she rushed to stand behind him, not questioning any further. She may be a hardcore kunoichi, usually calm in most situations- but she knew that an enraged sanin on your ass was…..well it was obvious to everyone.

'_Here she comes,'_ the toad sage thought with a grim expression as he gazed at incoming figure of his teammate.

"THERE YOU ARE!" came an enraged yell as the blonde medic landed on the ground before dashing towards Tayuya who was standing behind Jiraiya. Tsunade however couldn't see anything else except the red haired girl.

"Get aside Jiraiya or I'll WHACK you into the next orbit!" she threatened in blind rage, already midway while the toad sanin just stood there.

"Fine then! Take….THIS!" rearing her chakra powered fist (not using much chakra so as to not seriously injure Jiraiya), she pulled it back towards Jiraiya's shoulder full force at blurry speeds, not wanting to kill her teammate.

THUP!

Tsunade's eyes widened in shock when her fist was caught by Jiraiya's left hand resulting in a loud thwack of a sound, a small crater forming underneath them due to the impact as a violent gust of wind generated outwards. The slug sanin's pupil though zoomed out in shock when she noticed his face now up close in the dark.

"**S-Sennin Moodo **(Sage Mode)," she stuttered in astonishment due to having seen it after so many years and that Jiraiya would use it against her, he RARELY used this.

'_Holy shit!'_ Tayuya thought flabbergasted as she stood there, not being able to believe her eyes. Jiraiya had just stopped one of those legendary punches like it was nothing.

'_So this is the real toad sanin, the one who taught the legendary __**Kiroi Senkou **__(Yellow Flash), the yondaime Hokage,'_ she further thought in immense surprise.

"Before you try to hit me again Tsunade, look over my shoulder, behind the girl," Jiraiya verbalized in a serious tone, no signs of his usual goofiness as his face returned back to normal. The stunned medic lifted her head to to notice an unconscious blonde laying on a blanket.

"M-Minato?" she questioned with widened eyes as the toad sage released her fist, shaking his head in denial.

"No, it's his son, Uzumaki Naruto- the one you thought to have died thirteen years ago. He was alive all this time, but now….he's in a life threatening situation," he said, dropping a bombshell on Tsunade as she staggered back while Hinata and Shizune landed in front of them.

"Tsunade-sama, what happened?" Shizune asked as she gazed at the trembling form of her mentor while Hinata rushed at Naruto's side to check on his condition.

"N-No….you're lying. I was told he died along with Kushina and Minato that day. T-There's no way he could have been alive all this time and I wasn't informed," she spoke in a quivering voice as Jiraiya narrowed his eyes.

"You think I'm lying Tsunade! You think that person laying there is not Naruto, but some imposter we are using to trick you into coming to the village?" he growled in impatience while pointing at Naruto's unconscious body.

"N-Naruto?" this time it was Shizune's turn to get shocked, that was a name she had not heard for a long time. She knew how much Tsunade loved Kushina, that how she was happy just as much as Kushina when they came to know that the red head Uzumaki was pregnant. Shizune had seen Tsunade happy after a long time, the medic was joyous back then. The blonde had always treated Kushina just like her daughter, and it was like she was going to be a grandmother. But the fact that she was told that Minato, Kushina and Naruto died in the Kyuubi attack had crushed her completely- it was the final push that made her leave Konoha.

"Sensei told you that those three died and that some unnamed orphan was chosen as the new Kyuubi jinchuriki by Minato before dying. It was a lie, the one he chose to seal the Kyuubi in was his own son. Now are you going to help us treat him or not?" he exclaimed with some anger seeping into his tone while both Tsunade and Shizune stood there frozen.

"This is bad, the poison is spreading into his body and his internal organs are getting damaged. His chakra is no longer able to stop it completely!" Hinata spoke frantically, her Toyotama Byakugan activated as she stared into his body making the slug princess snap out of her thoughts.

"Shizune!" she exclaimed, rushing to Naruto's side quickly as Hinata gave her space. Acting instantly, Shizune too blurred towards Naruto, ready to aide her master. Meanwhile, Tsunade who sat on her knees besides Naruto had her eyes widened as she gazed at his pale face.

'_T-The face….his nose, the whiskers, spiky blonde hair, that innocent expression….h-he really is…'_ tears welled up in her chocolate brown eyes as she stared at him, clutching her pants tightly while Shizune too stared at him with wide eyes- clamping a hand on her mouth in shock.

"N-Naruto….," Tsunade's lower lip began to quiver as tears now began to stream down her cheeks, tears of happiness that her godson was still alive; her heart swelling with a rush of excitement.

"Tsunade-sama…." Shizune trailed as she stared at Naruto, not believing her eyes. Lifting her trembling hand, Tsunade gently touched his cheeks, her vision glossy as she bit her lower lip; remembering the last time she had been in his presence.

**Flashback: Thirteen Years Ago: Two Days Before the Kyuubi's Attack**

"I'm doing this so-called urgent mission only because you said so Kushina. Geez, that Minato sure do acts like an idiot sometimes. It's about time for delivery and he dares send me on a S-rank mission when I should be taking care of you," Tsunade spoke with a frown, talking to Kushina who currently was laying on a bed in her apartment while a much younger Shizune stood besides the medic.

"Don't worry Kaa-chan, I'll take good care of my Naru-kun," Kushina spoke with a smile as she rubbed her swollen belly lovingly making Tsunade and Shizune smile at the sight.

"Yeah, you'd better take good care of him. I'll try to rush back here as soon as possibly. I can't wait to see him!" the blonde medic spoke in glee, a grin on her face while Shizune too smiled.

"Yeah, I can't wait to hold him in my arms," the fiery red head whispered to herself, a bit tired when Tsunade stood up with a sigh.

"We should leave now, the sooner we go, the sooner we can return to see our Naru-chan…ne Shizune-chan?" she asked with a smile making the black haired girl nod enthusiastically. Bending towards Kushina, Tsunade neared her belly with a smile.

"You behave yourself and be a good boy Naru-chan, and don't cause Shina-chan too much trouble. Tsunade-chan loves you," she whispered softly with a giggle when Kushina's eyes widen.

"H-He kicked!" she exclaimed with a bright smile making Tsunade blink at her before a large grin spread across her face.

"See? He already likes me!" she spoke with a smug smirk, hands on her hips when Kushina noticed young Shizune standing there while looking at her belly somewhat curiously.

"Shizune-chan, you want to say something to Naru-kun?" she questioned with a small smile making the black haired teen look at her in surprise.

"M-Me? W-What do I s-say?" she stuttered with an embarrassed blush when Tsunade pulled her gently towards Kushina.

"Oh don't be shy now Shizune. Say something now will you?" she uttered with a mischievous smile. Nodding somewhat meekily, Shizune lowered her head towards her belly, gulping in nervousness making Kushina giggle at her innocent and cute face.

"Um…s-so, I hope you're doing fine in there Naruto-kun. I hope you come out soon, so that we could play with each other. So, um….I'll see you later I guess," she whispered with a small blush before backing up.

"He seems to like you too Shizune-chan, he kicked yet again," Kushina spoke with a giggle making the black haired teen's eyes widen.

"Really?" she asked making the red head nod as she grinned toothily while rubbing the back of her head.

**Flashback Ends!**

'_This presence….I can feel it….this is my Naru-chan,'_ Tsunade thought as she smiled, sniffing to herself before wiping her tears when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, he is our Naruto. I know you must have lots of questions, but you better heal him quickly, his condition is serious Tsunade," Jiraiya muttered with a sad smile as Hinata and Tayuya stood besides him. Sniffing to hold back her tears of happiness, she started to use her mystic palm technique- accessing the damage with Shizune doing the same.

'_Naru-chan…..as long as I'm alive, nothing is going to happen to you- that's a promise I made to Shina-chan all those years ago, a promise I thought I couldn't keep. But this time, being given the second chance, I intend to be there for __you__ till I live….that's the promise of a lifetime!'_

**So tell me what you think. And I wouldn't be overpowering the Byakugan like Sharingan, so don't worry. Please review and take care everyone. **

**N6023**


	38. Regret

**Hey guys! I'm sorry for updating this after almost a month, but I got a bit busy writing a one shot and due to exams. But nevertheless, here you go-**

**Chapter-38-Regret**

'_This presence….I can feel it….this is my Naru-chan,'_ Tsunade thought as she smiled, sniffing to herself before wiping her tears when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, he is our Naruto. I know you must have lots of questions, but you better heal him quickly, his condition is serious Tsunade," Jiraiya muttered with a sad smile as Hinata and Tayuya stood besides him. Sniffing to hold back her tears of happiness, she started to use her mystic palm technique- accessing the damage with Shizune doing the same.

'_Naru-chan…..as long as I'm alive, nothing is going to happen to you- that's a promise I made to Shina-chan all those years ago, a promise I thought I couldn't keep. But this time, being given the second chance, I intend to be there for you till I live….that's the promise of a lifetime!'_ she thought with determination while Jiraiya heaved a silent sigh of relief, backing up as he gave the two medics some space while Hinata continued to gaze at the unconscious blonde in worry; her Byakugan activated.

_'Please be safe Naruto-kun,' _she thought while Tayuya just stared at the blonde with a neutral expression on her face.

_'So even the slug sanin is close to shithead huh? He sure has a bunch of people caring for him- this Hyuga, Jiraiya, Tsunade, the current Hokage and even the previous sandaime seemed to be close to him. That's really odd for a jinchuriki, especially for the one who hosts the most powerful bijuu to exist,'_ she pondered while Shizune had unsealed some emergency medical supplies she and Tsunade usually kept for emergency situations.

**Meanwhile: Konoha: Konoha's General Hospital**

"Jiraiya-sama left with Naruto-kun along with Hinata and that Oto kunoichi this evening," Kurenai spoke quietly, sadness evident in her ruby eyes as she stared through the open window, letting the cool breeze of the night circulate through Anko's room.

"I...I never thought this could happen. Itachi, he was someone Naru-kun looked up to. He considered him as his older brother!" Anko exclaimed, sitting on her bed as she clenched the white blanket tightly; a look of mixture of anger and concern on her face.

"Calm down Anko-chan, your condition will only get worse if you stay like this," Yugao said quietly, putting a comforting hand on the snake mistress's shoulder as she sat beside her bed.

"We can think over this later, I just hope Tsunade-sama can save Naruto-kun," Hana mumbled, leaning against a wall on the opposite side of Anko's bed; a forlorn expression on her face.

"Nah, he'll be alright. Not only do I have trust in Tsunade-sama's abilities, I also trust Naruto's regeneration abilities due to his own chakra and Ayumi too. What we do have to concentrate on is the mental damage he must have suffered," Anko verbalized with a sigh making Kurenai nod.

"She's right, he and Itachi were really close to each other. And for that bastard to backstab Naruto-kun like that, it must have crushed him," the genjutsu mistress sighed, gripping the curtain tightly as she contained her anger.

The room was silent, the moonlight dimly lighting the ward as the fire queens remained quiet; lost in their respective thoughts.

"So even you three don't know the complete details huh? Didn't you ask Kushina-nee or Kakashi? You did say that he was present there with Naruto right?" Anko asked, breaking the silence.

"We did, but Kushina-nee has declared what happened earlier as an S-rank secret. So right now only her, Kakashi and Naruto-kun know the complete story. Even the fact that Itachi and Kisame had entered the village comes under the secret, let alone Itachi attacking Naruto," Yugao uttered, her one hand on the hilt of her katana while Hana kept gazing at the shining full moon; concern reflecting in her eyes.

**Mikoto's Room**

_'The moon is full today,'_ Mikoto mused absent-mindedly as she stared through the window, laying on the bed. All day her thoughts had been like a raging storm; shifting towards different subjects. She just wanted to confront Sasuke for once; she was almost sure that he would come back to her as soon as he sees her.

_'It's a shame that Itachi-kun had to make Sasuke-kun suffer so much. Even though his intentions were good, I'm so gonna teach him a lesson for going so hard on his otouto. I hope we three can get together and form what's left of our large family,'_ she thought with a sad expression.

"I wonder what Naruto-kun is up to right now," she muttered with a smile, her heart filling with warmth that the blonde had matured so much since she had last seen him; he had grown so strong in such a short time. What had really baffled her was when she came to know about his Rinnegan and that Kushina had jumped into the future; if not deliberately- thirteen years ago to reach their present timeline.

She was joyous to meet her best friend though, and happy that Naruto had finally found his mother. At first, the Uchiha matriarch was a bit uncomfortable when she came to know about their...abnormal relationship. But after talking to Kushina, after seeing the smile on the red head's face- she found herself not minding it much then. If both Naruto and Kushina were happy, then she had no qualms on the matter. Besides, incest wasn't a totally out-of-place matter in the shinobi world and the DNA changes because of the Rinnegan more than made up for it.

Mikoto still had to see how strong Naruto was though. She was shocked, but giddy at the same time when Kushina had bragged about how her 'Naru-kun' was a genius, a rare prodigy just like Itachi; that he was around mid-jounin level at the present. She was not so surprised when the red head had also stated his biggest weakness of being easily manipulated- mainly by the enemy using his own emotions against him.

Considering the blonde's childhood, she knew that he would be emotionally unstable. Mental and physical scars could he healed; but it seemed that the blonde jinchuriki didn't have control over his emotions. She also didn't like how during the preliminaries, as told by Kushina- that Sasuke had said something foul about the blonde's mother. Naruto immediately lost control over himself and had almost crippled Sasuke. Well either way, Mikoto had to say that she was ashamed of her son for getting so low against his own teammate.

_'But still, Naruto-kun did lose his calm there...what if it was an actual enemy on a battlefield? He could have lost his life for being so reckless,'_ she pondered with a frown while gazing outside.

It was quite common in the ninja world- enemies would try to rile you up, to make you go into blind rage and lose your calm. Statements like- 'Your mother's a whore!', 'Hey dude...last night I fucked your sister ya know that?', 'After you die, I would love to hear your slutty wife moan my name as I ravish her!'...these were common and many shinobi had lost their lives because they couldn't extricate themselves from their emotions during the battlefield; even if they were stronger than their enemies. Even now she remembered one useful thing Fugaku had said to her once-

'On a ninja's playground, you aren't a father or mother, wife or husband, brother or sister, friend or lover- you are an orphan, an emotionless tool trained to serve his or her village, a human tool without its own basic moral sense of what is right or wrong.'

And even though Mikoto didn't wholly agree with that statement personally- but following it did help her on many high ranking missions. She did not consider shinobi as tools, but neither does a shinobi lets his emotions come into play when they're fighting or on a mission.

Naruto did need to learn that lesson quickly, or it wouldn't be long before the Akatsuki would capture him.

"For how much longer is Kushina-chan going to keep me here?" the Uchiha matriarch mumbled to herself with a sigh as she stared at the ceiling.

**Meanwhile: Konoha: Hokage's Tower**

"I...I honestly don't know what to say," Hiruzen spoke with an exhausted sigh, sitting on the couch with Kushina sitting on her chair while Kakashi stood in front of the large window, gazing outside through it.

Apparently, after Jiraiya had took off with Naruto; Kushina had thought over the matter with Kakashi before calling the sandaime Hokage in- telling him everything that had happened before with Itachi and Kisame.

"Itachi and Kisame were working for me as spies through the Akatsuki. Then do you mean to say they were under Danzo's control the whole time?" the former aged Hokage asked with a frown while Kushina was lost in her own thoughts as ske kept staring off into empty space.

"Obviously that's what Itachi meant to imply," Kakashi answered, his jaw tightened.

"But it could be that Itachi and Kisame were under Danzo's control now instead of a month ago. That's a possibility too," the professor's eyes now sharp as he thought over this when Hatake immediately interjected.

"No, that's not the case here," his voice monotone when Kushina spoke.

"If both Itachi and Kisame were under that genjutsu Koto Amatsukami earlier today, then Naru-kun would have immediately noticed that they were under a genjutsu...just like back when Roshi of the lava release was during the invasion," her voice stern as she turned to the former Hokage.

"But why are you only referring to Naruto? You two were there too weren't you? Couldn't you tell with your Sharingan?" a confused expression on his face.

"Actually sandaime-sama, if what Itachi today said is true...then Sharingan is incapable of sensing that Koto Amatsukami," he stated in a lazy tone, but with a hint of seriousness in his voice while Kushina nodded.

"He's right. Neither I or Kakashi could detect any signs of a genjutsu on Roshi...or Uchiha Sasuke during the invasion while Naruto had immediately came to know that both of them were being controlled. It seems that Rinnegan is capable of detecting Koto Amatsukami, not surprising I would say considering it is the strongest doujutsu," a tired sigh escaping her lips.

"Earlier we were suspicious of Naruto that he could have been lying to us to possibly defend Sasuke with Roshi just acting as another victim to make his lie believable. But with now Itachi confirming the same thing, I guess Naruto was saying the truth," the copy ninja muttered, staring down at the speck of lights throughout Konoha during the night.

"If only Rinnegan is capable of sensing this Koto Amatsukami, and according to what Itachi has said today... Naruto-kun should've noticed this same genjutsu on both of them a month ago. Then this only points towards the fact that Itachi was most probably bluffing," Hiruzen surmised with conviction in his voice.

"It doesn't work like that, this situation is much more complex than that," she shot back in what seemed to be frustration while Sarutobi calmly listened in.

"Back then, the Rinnegan had just awakened and was on the first level. Do you remember what was written in Mito-sama's scroll (the one stating the abilities of Rinnegan in ch 3) whose copy you had given to Itachi?" the red head said, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. She just couldn't keep Naruto out of her mind for even a second, she was worried sick for him after all. And today's events had left her mentally as well as emotionally drained. Everything was going fine when this had to happen. Her 'Naru-kun' had finally woken up in the hospital and then immediately the following morning this stunt was pulled.

Sarutobi however nodded at her question, alreading thinking on what she was trying to imply.

"The ability to notice and see through genjutsu comes with the _second_ level of the Rinnegan. Hence the reason why Naru-kun couldn't detect any possible genjutsu as strong as Koto-Amatsukami when he possessed level one," she uttered when Kakashi intervened.

"Also, Naruto had informed Kushina-nee here that when he had noticed the genjutsu on Roshi, his second level hadn't been unlocked yet. This means that even the pseudo-second level of Rinnegan was somehow able to sense the genjutsu," he explained while Hiruzen could honestly feel himself getting tired of this.

"This only further solidifies the probability that Itachi wasn't under control earlier today and was speaking of his own free will. What we aren't sure is if he was under control a month ago?" Kushina verbalized in a neutral tone.

"However, what you told me about what Itachi said today- it all seems pretty true and logical," Hiruzen began making even Kakashi now turn his head towards him, seemingly curious.

"The last time we met Itachi and Kisame was a month ago during the second part of the chunin exams where they gave their weekly report. But after that, as I told you before...both of them didn't report to me for a month and then they suddenly appear now. It's as if Itachi and Kisame really were in a genjutsu back then as they spied for us, and indirectly for Danzo too ofcourse. And then when they returned to their duties as a part of Akatsuki, it was as if the genjutsu had been dispelled and they didn't return after that."

"Dispelled? But how can a genjutsu as strong as Koto Amatsukami be dispelled? Do you mean to say that Akatsuki have a Rinnegan user in their group?" Kakashi asked quickly in surprise while Kushina just stayed quiet, her violet eyes now narrowed.

"I think you've read the reports Itachi gave to me Kushina. You know that Akatsuki's leader possesses the Rinnegan right? And that too on level three?" he questioned making Kakashi's lone eye widen in shock before he jerked towards Kushina to notice her nod silently.

"Then you should also know that Akatsuki usually hold meetings in which members are not physically present, but rather they meet through their holographic projections," the old kage uttered making her nod again while Kakashi just opted to stay silent and absorb the shock.

"What are you trying to say jiji?" she asked a bit impatiently.

"What I'm saying that, suppose when earlier Itachi and Kisame were under genjutsu and they were spying for us- the leader could not have detected the genjutsu through just holographic projections when they would meet," Kushina's eyes now widened as she immediately understood what he was trying to imply.

"You mean to say that sometime during the month, Itachi and Kisame must've met this leader physically where he had detected the genjutsu and then maybe could've dispelled it?" she asked in shock while Kakashi too stood there speechless. It all made sense actually, even if by a slight off chance Itachi and Kisame weren't under control when they were in the forest of death with Naruto- it was a definite possibility that they could've been under control before and after that event.

"Yes, and with level three of a doujutsu as strong as Rinnegan...it's definitely possible," he articulated.

"Still, these are all just theories. Even if most probably they are true, we'll just be moving around in circles talking like this. We need more evidence. If what Itachi today said is true, then we do know Danzo's aim. But if Itachi was lying...or bluffing, it confuses me greatly as to what he could possibly be trying to achieve by all of this," the copy nin sighed in exasperation.

"Itachi lying? No, this is the least of all the possibilities, there's nothing productive he's gaining from this- definitely nothing productive for us though. So far, all the things he has said work in the favour of Akatsuki. Telling us the secrets of Danzo, about this lethal genjutsu that Danzo is capable of using- he himself said that it would be much easier for Akatsuki too if Danzo was eliminated. No, I don't think he was lying," Kushina hissed with narrowed eyes as silence washed over the office.

"All those years ago, Itachi himself volunteered for the SS-rank Uchiha Massacre mission. He said that it was for Konoha, to prevent any more bloodshed and wars. And after that he had joined the Akatsuki and spied for us," Sarutobi muttered calmly making Kushina's pupil zoom out in shock.

"Jiji, d-don't tell me...," her voice trailed in mind boggling surprise while Kakashi too could feel his knees getting a bit weak over the gravity of the situation that the former Hokage was implying.

"It's a definite possibility now that I think about it Kushina. What I think is that back then Itachi was under the control of Danzo when he agreed for the mission. I was always a bit suspicious as to why Itachi would volunteer to kill his own clan, his own family...even if it was for the good of Konoha. But now that I see this situation from another angle, everything makes sense. The mission was given by the elders, me and Danzo. That war hawk too knew how much of a threat the Uchiha clan was becoming. So according to me- Danzo controlled Itachi, made him volunteer for the mission, made him kill his clan and deliberately left Uchiha Sasuke so that atleast one pure blooded Sharingan user remained in the village- it's pretty Danzo-ish to do something like this don't you think? After that Danzo made him flee from the village, join Akatsuki where his partner- Orochimaru was working too," he took a breath when Kakashi now spoke.

"And then when the genjutsu broke during the one month break as you said before sandaime-sama, Itachi probably felt betrayed by his own village and hence now is truly working for Akatsuki. It could be that by using this fact, the leader might have manipulated Itachi into believing it was all Konoha's fault that the Uchiha clan and his family was killed. Thus the reason why Itachi told us about Danzo's secrets and wants us to eliminate him. It serves both his as well as Akatsuki's interests too," an expression of agreement on Hiruzen's face while Kushina could honestly feel her head spinning from all these possibilities.

"Let's just stop with all these theories...right now, we have to prepare ourselves for all the possibilities," she verbalized with a serious expression on her face.

"As you two know, I have declared what happened earlier today as an S-rank secret. It also applies to Mikoto-chan, so don't tell her anything. I've already told the others who arrived later at the scene," Hiruzen blinked while Kakashi nodded silently.

"Are you sure this is the correct decision Kushina-chan?" the professor asked with narrowed eyes while she closed her eyes.

"Hai...if Mikoto comes to know of what happened today, she'll be devastated."

"But you should consider on telling her at a later time. I've already told her of the reasons we had to massacre the Uchiha clan and surprisingly she had taken the news quite well. You should trust in her, she's an S-rank kunoichi just like you after all," Sarutobi said with a piercing gaze when Kushina opened her eyes to glance at him, her head resting on the top of her seat before she shifted her eyes towards the ceiling; her expression turning a bit melancholic.

"I do trust her. It's just that I don't want to see her in more pain than she already is suffering through. She hasn't yet compelety coped with the fact that her clan is dead and that Orochimaru has Uchiha Sasuke with him. I think we should give her some time."

"And with Mikoto-sama by our side, we'll have a much better chance against Orochimaru and Akatsuki," Kakashi muttered as he now stood, leaned against the wall behind a sitting Hiruzen.

"Konoha already has a couple of S-rank nins here. Kushina-chan here, Mikoto, Jiraiya and now even Tsunade. Naruto too will become extremely strong within a few years. And considering the rate at which he's growing, it won't be long before he surpasses us all...even you Kushina," he spoke with a teasing smirk, hoping to lighten the tense atmosphere. Kushina's lips though curled upwards at that.

"Heh, and I'll be the happiest in Konoha when that day comes," she uttered with a smile while Kakashi too gave his 'U' eyed smile.

"And Kakashi here too has been steadily growing strong. It wouldn't be long before he reaches kage level too. Don't you think Kushina-chan?" Hiruzen spoke making Kakashi chuckle in embarrassment while Kushina nodded with a warm smile before her lips curled down a bit.

_'Naruto...,'_ her eyes getting soft as she stared absent-mindedly at the copy ninja.

**Tanzaku Town: Unknown Hotel**

"How's he doing?" Jiraiya asked, after entering the room where Tsunade and Shizune had been operating on the unconscious blonde for sometime now with Hinata and Tayuya staying in another room.

A cold wet towel laid on Naruto's head, who was currently laying on a bed under a blanket with Tsunade holding his hand, gazing at his facial features with a soft expression on her face. Shizune though was standing beside Tsunade, resting a comforting hand on her mentor's shoulder.

"His condition is stable now Jiraiya-sama. He's just unconscious for now," Shizune uttered with a lost look on her face as she kept gazing at the blonde while Tsunade too seemed to be lost in her thoughts.

_'They still can't believe he was alive all along,'_ the toad sanin thought with a grim expression when the door behind him creaked open again.

Turning his head back, he was not surprised to see who it was.

"I'm sorry...but I couldn't sleep," Hinata spoke as she entered the room, giving the sanin a light bow of apology. However, Jiraiya could clearly see the look of extreme concern for the whiskered blonde on her face.

"I understand Hinata...what about Tayuya? Is she awake too?" he asked in curiosity.

"Yes, we were talking to each other when I felt like I should check up on his condition. I just couldn't sleep without knowing that he was alright," she mumbled the last part quietly, oddly remembering her conversation with Tayuya in their room.

**Flashback: Several Minutes Ago**

Both of them were currently laying on their bed, the room dimly lit due to the street lights outside. Hinata for obvious reasons, was not asleep as she kept staring at the ceiling. A sigh escaped her lips as she shifted on her side, getting anxious over Naruto's health.

_'Why did they have to put a visibility barrier? It's not like they're doing something secret in there. Now my Byakugan is useless. My Toyotama Byakugan will be able to see through it definitely, but I just used too much chakra in using Uzume and Shinto,'_ she pondered when Tayuya spoke.

"You should calm down you know, getting worked up over that shithead isn't gonna work out for you," Hinata's eyes narrowed as a surge of anger rose through her.

".- it's Uzumaki Naruto," she hissed with hostility taking the red head; who was laying on a single bed beside Hinata by surprise. She didn't know that the Hyuga could get angry judging by the soft expression she had on her face the whole day. But it was understandable considering it was pretty obvious that the girl liked that blonde; so naturally she would take offence to that.

Now normally Tayuya would retaliate with a raging fire that would make even the worst scums of the red light district blush; but considering she was looking towards making some friends- taking a new step in her life...

"Um, I'm sorry...Hinata," she apologized a bit awkwardly, not having the experience in apologizing to anyone.

The lavender eyed kunoichi could only sigh as she shifted her position to face the red head in the dark.

"No, I'm sorry Tayuya-san. I guess...I was just worried and frustrated over what had happened today. I shouldn't have spoken to you like that," her tone apologetic while Tayuya once again found herself stunned. No one had ever apologized to her for _anything_ in her life except Kin. Now that really made her respect for the Hyuga go up a notch.

A strangely comforting silence ensued between them as both of them found themselves staring at the ceiling, lost in their own thoughts.

"Hey Hinata," she called while Hinata 'hmm'-ed to indicate that she was listening.

"What…why do you like shithe-Naruto so much?" she asked, correcting herself in between.

"W-Why do you ask?" Hinata stuttered, blushing in the dark while Tayuya turned her head towards the window through which the light-greenish light was coming.

"I'm…just curious," she muttered, her facial features now loosened up instead of being knit into that usual scowl. The Hyuga heiress however sighed quietly as she put a hand over her heart.

"It's because…I-I just love him. Naruto-kun, as you know, is a jinchuriki and hosts the most powerful bijuu in the world. Ever since he was born, having no parents to support him whatsoever, he was scorned, hated and ignored by the villagers of Konoha. Almost everyone despised his existence, they wished that he would just disappear from their village. He never knew the meaning of love, he never knew the feeling of being loved yet…yet he never gave up. Even though he failed in the ninja academy twice because of teachers not teaching him anything deliberately, he never gave up. Well, I guess he did give up sometimes….but he would shortly motivate himself and stand up again. He just had this mantra of never giving up, something in him, one dream of his fueled him to never give up even when the things looked hopeless. He just had this iron faith in himself…it was like no matter how many times you would try to discourage him, he would just ignore you and keep trying until he achieved what he was aiming for," she inhaled deeply while Tayuya remained silent, not so surprised to hear his life….but the way he handled it, it was definitely admiring; but still….

"But still, there was something else more appealing in him that drew me towards him. His smile, his bright eyes, his cute whisker marks….I don't know, I just felt this strange attraction towards him on first sight. I wanted to be like him, I admired him in the beginning. But as time grew, as I watched him break through all the odds and still smile through them like nothing had happened…..I started to fall in love with him. I knew he inwardly hated the villagers, that he was putting a brave front and a fake smile….but what I liked was the strength to maintain that smile of his throughout the years. Aside from that, on first impression….you may see him as an annoying and loud shinobi, but when you get to know him, you begin to see him for the kind, gentle, passionate, brave and caring person he is," Tayuya kept staring at the window while curling a strand of her red hair around her finger, probably thinking of something.

"Tayuya-san….do you…do you believe in regret?" the red head kunoichi furrowed her eyebrows at the strange question.

"Why do you ask?"

"N-No….it's nothing," Hinata mumbled, her pearly eyes containing sadness while Tayuya had easily sensed the sorrow in her voice.

"Hinata, if you want to say something, don't fucking hold back. I know that I'm a complete stranger and a complete ass to be around, but still- I think I want to hear your story. Kin-chan did tell me that how both of you had become best friends over the month," Tayuya said with a light blush, all of this so fucking embarrassing! She was not used to opening herself to anyone except Kin.

Hinata's eyes though widened a bit at hearing that. From the outside, Tayuya looked to be a stuck up person just like her cousin used to be. But now she was getting to know the former Oto kunoichi. And Kin did tell her that how Tayuya was a really nice person once you get to know her. At first sight, she may be annoying and completely repulsive, but….

'_She's just like Naruto-kun used to be,'_ Hinata thought with a sad smile. Closing her eyes, she bit her lower lip, not sure where to begin.

"Back when I and Naruto-kun were in the academy, I often saw him alone. I used to stalk him, getting curious to get to know the real him. And when he was alone, only then I could see the clear loneliness, sadness and pain he would feel almost every day of his life. What bothers me the most….," her voice begin to quiver as she began to remember the conversation she had with Naruto during the preliminaries.

_"Then why do you stutter in front of me, why faint, why avoid me? If that's not fear then what it is? What makes you different from the rest of villagers and shinobi populace then? If you like me, then why never approach me?"_

She couldn't forget what he had said back then, it suffocated her even now.

_"I know you liked me right from the start, I know you followed me, I am not an idiot Hinata. I know you secretly cheered for me in the academy, secretly prayed for me, but why...why didn't you ever approach me, why didn't you try to at least be my friend when I was lonely, when I sat lonely by the swing. If I'm the one you like, shouldn't I be a source of comfort for you, shouldn't you be comfortable around me, shouldn't you be just yourself around me & forget all of your problems in the world!"_

He had yelled at her angrily back then, it made her cry every time she thought about it. She would never forget the haunted look in his glossy eyes, the excruciating pain in them. It clenched her heart to know that she was the cause for the torment he had went through- that she could have eased his suffering and yet she didn't.

Tears glided down her cheeks before she quickly wiped them with her sleeve.

"I…I could've approached him, I could've become his friend. But because of my own insecurities, thinking of just myself, of my own problems and not his….I could never gather up the courage to speak even a single word to him. Just thinking that I could never do anything right, giving up on myself so easily….it angers me now! I should have tried more, I should have done more than just stalking and fainting in front of him. I….I just regret so much, I could have done so much to help Naruto with early on in his life," a quite sob escaped her lips while Tayuya just closed her eyes, listening to Hinata sniff in the silence of the room. Actually, she knew Hinata's story all along. Hinata being close to Kin, had once told of her life in Konoha with Kin doing the same. And these two-three days she had done nothing but listen to Kin's blabbering about how her life this past month had went in Konoha.

"Do you faint in front of him now?" she asked in a stern tone, her eyes still closed.

"N-No," Hinata replied while wiping her eyes, trying to control herself.

"Do you stutter in front of him now?"

"No, but Tayu-"

"Do you stalk him now?"

"I don't need to now, I can directly talk to Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke in confusion when the red head kunoichi mumbled quietly.

"Then there's nothing to regret now, what has happened is in the past now. You have come a long way since the academy as Kin told me, so quit worrying 'bout the lost virginity now…it can't be gained back," she spoke off-handedly making Hinata blush furiously as she buried her face in the pillow. Being a part of the royal main branch, she wasn't used to this obviously.

"Beside, you should be happy now that he has so many people now caring for him," Tayuya muttered, her eyelids closing as she felt herself getting sleepy. Hinata silently nodded as she wiped her cheeks, a smile grazing her beautiful features as she remembered how Naruto had so many people caring for him now, he even had his mother back now.

'_Still…..one thing I failed to do, that's something I think I will regret for a long time. But…..arigatou Tayuyu-san. Kin-chan was right after all I guess, you really are a nice person once someone gets to know you…just like Naruto-kun.'_

**Flashback Ends**

"Jiraiya…," Hinata was snapped out of her thoughts upon hearing Tsunade's quiet voice. Turning back, Jiraiya knew things were about to get messier if the aura being emitted from Tsunade was anything to go by.

"How was Naruto's life? Who looked after him?" her tone was stern, her sharp chocolate orbs piercing through the toad sage as he averted his gaze. Shizune however, just by the sad look in his eyes could predict the answer. Just today they had come to know that Konoha's jinchuriki was Naruto all along, and if that look of sorrow was anything to go by….not much had to be pondered about the life of a jinchuriki.

"Tsunade….well, you see….," he trailed while Hinata too was gazing at the floor with a forlorn look on her face.

Resting Naruto's hand on the bed gently, Tsunade stood up as she walked around the bed towards Jiraiya, a threatening look in her eyes.

"I asked you something Jiraiya," this time the trio could feel her boiling anger.

"Tsunade-sama please calm down. We should…," Shizune trailed upon receiving a murderous glare from the slug sanin. Turning back to him, she narrowed her eyes-signalling the toad sage to speak.

"You know how the life of a jinchuriki is Tsunade. No one adopted him, and I was busy with maintaining the spy network outside of Konoha. Naruto was raised in an orphanage where-"

THWASH!

"He's NOT a jinchuriki you bastard! HE'S OUR GODSON!" she yelled in rage after slamming Jiraiya onto the wall, creating a crater while he just stared at anything but her eyes. Her elbow was pressed to his neck as she breathed heavily.

"HE'S MINATO AND KUSHINA'S SON! HOW DARE YOU CALL HIM A JINCHURIKI LIKE IT'S NOTHING!" both HInata and Shizune remained quiet as they watched the scene with wide eyes, stunned at Tsunade's outburst.

Closing her eyes, Tsunade breathed in deeply before opening them while Jiraiya was surprised to see the ferocity in them.

"Why….WHY wasn't I informed that he was alive?" she asked loudly, pushing her elbow deeper onto his neck while Jiraiya just kept his eyes on floor, knowing that he had fucked up badly. He had to apologize to Naruto, to Kushina…..and he guessed Tsunade was next in line.

"S-Sensei didn't want to tell you as you were already quite broken up over Dan and Nawaki's death. He thought that you would be unstable and felt that you needed a break outside of Konoha. H-He thought you wouldn't be able to take care of Naruto properly."

"And he thought than an orphanage would be a better option?" she growled loudly. Before he could say anything, she spoke again….

"What about Kakashi? What about those four….Kurenai, Hana, Yugao and Anko, what about them? Why didn't they adopt him?" she asked quickly, her heart clenching at predicting what kind of life her godson must have lived.

"Tsunade calm down first. It was all because of the council. They had gained too much influence ov-"

"The council? THE COUNCIL?" she screamed in rage while Shizune was thankful that a barrier had been set up around the room before they had started operating on Naruto.

Jiraiya however cringed at seeing the look of madness on Tsunade's face. Loosening her hold on his neck, she stepped back….her bangs shadowing her face as she pointed towards door.

"OUT Jiraiya…..just, get out before I do something I might regret! I need some space here!" she growled in a low tone this time while the toad sanin could only nod sadly, watching his teammate. Shifting his gaze, he glanced towards Shizune somewhat apologetically before walking towards the door, grabbing HInata's arm in the process to drag her with him.

**I know! I know! Not much happened in this chapter too! But I had to clear up several things and build up some things! Don't worry though, Naruto wakes up immediately at the start of the next chapter after I do a small timeskip of about two-three days. And I hope this fic has kept you entertained from the beginning and that it keeps you waiting eagerly for the next chapter.**

**IMPORTANT!****- Now a few days ago, I was just idly sifting through the initial chapters of this fic. One thing I did immediately notice was that how pathetic my writing skills were in the beginning of this fic. I was not pleased by the number of mistakes I found. SO I just wanted to ask you guys- ****Is someone willing to beta a few of this fic's initial chapters (first eight chapters)?**** Your help would very appreciated. I'm not doing it myself cause it will take some time and I'd rather put those precious hours for writing new chapters instead of beta'ing old ones. So please, I would be really thankful for your help. Thanks! :)**

**By the way, for those who haven't checked out the one-shot I recently published, I would appreciate it if you would do so. It's a NarutoxKonan though-'The Couple of Prophecy'.**

**So, I hoped you like this chapter. Please review readers and tell me what you think so far. And don't worry, I will keep updating this at regular intervals of about ten days from now on. :D**

**Ja ne!**

**N6023**


	39. Who to Trust? My Instincts?

**'Phew'...Again a late update huh? I'm sure you guys are getting tired of the wait. -.-**

**Only thing I can say is that I would try my level best to update much faster than this. But oh well, here's the next chapter-**

**Chapter-39-Who to trust? My Instincts?**

"Tsunade calm down first. It was all because of the council. They had gained too much influence ov-"

"The council? THE COUNCIL?" she screamed in rage while Shizune was thankful that a barrier had been set up around the room before they had started operating on Naruto.

Jiraiya however cringed at seeing the look of madness on Tsunade's face. Loosening her hold on his neck, she stepped back….her bangs shadowing her face as she pointed towards door.

"OUT Jiraiya…..just, get out before I do something I might regret! I need some space here!" she growled in a low tone this time while the toad sanin could only nod sadly, watching his teammate. Shifting his gaze, he glanced towards Shizune somewhat apologetically before walking towards the door, grabbing Hinata's arm in the process to drag her with him.

**Two Days Later-Night Time: Around 3 AM**

She moaned in a low tone as the sharp light rays from the street lamps fell upon her sleeping form. Her eyebrows scrunched up in irritation before her eyelids slowly lifted, revealing her groggy lavender eyes.

Her foggy vision slowly cleared for her to notice an empty bed in front of her. Now she remembered, not being able to sleep due to constant worrying for Naruto's health, she had quietly sneaked into the blonde's room.

Tsunade and Shizune would sleep in their room while she shared hers with Tayuya with Jiraiya having his own room directly in front of Naruto's. So sitting beside him, at some point she had dozed off while just staring at his face.

But now coming to the sight of an 'empty bed', her mind began to work in full gear with her grogginess lifting off instantly.

_'Where is he?'_ abruptly standing up, the chair falling back as she began to panic when suddenly she noticed a shadow beside her from the corner of her eyes. Snapping her head back, her breathing hitched in her throat as the Hyuga heiress stared at the back of the one she loved the most in the world.

There he was, standing in front of the wide window, gazing outside with the greenish-yellow light rays falling on his form, resulting in the shadow she had just noticed. There he was, perfect as ever, mesmerizing her as always, his sun kissed hair shining under the bright rays of the outside lights of the gambling town. She wished she could capture this sight, she wished she could always be there, watching his back; noticing how perfect he was to her.

Her lavender eyes started to become glossy as she bit her lower lip, trying to stop the tears of happiness.

"Na-Naruto...," her choked voice trailed when she noticed him visibly stiffen up as he turned his head back.

_'Beautiful...,'_ she thought, staring at his glowing face as it reflected the light. Though upon noticing his haunted eyes; her heart clenched upon seeing the sadness, pain and hopelessness in them.

"Hey," he spoke in a low tone, a smiling creeping onto his face when Hinata began to slowly walk towards him, her eyes never leaving his oceanic blue orbs. Reaching him, Naruto gazed at her in confusion when she slowly closed the gap between their bodies, hugging him tightly as she pressed her head onto his chest.

The blonde stood there in surprise for a second before he wrapped his arms around her form, resting his chin on her head while she tightened her grip on him.

"I was so worried about you. W-We thought that we were gonna lose you," she muttered with a sniff while he sifted his right hand through the strands of her dark blue hair, his eyes closed as a sigh escaped his lips.

"I'm sorry Hinata-chan," he murmured, hugging her tightly as the duo stood there in silence for several seconds before she pulled back, wiping her eyes.

Gazing into his eyes, her eyes grew soft. There was nothing left of his usual brightness, happiness, determination and those small sparks of innocence and mischief. That look didn't come with just physical injuries, a look like that was sported by a person who had suffered emotional pain and mental trauma.

_'What happened to you? What happened to those beautiful eyes of yours?'_ she mentally questioned, not being able to bear all these negative emotions being radiated out of his body language and his eyes.

"Hinata...," his voice trailed when she asked.

"A-Are you okay?" her voice soft as the Hyuga heiress rubbed the whisker marks on his right cheek, a concerned expression on her face. His lips curved down while his blue orbs softened as he slowly averted his gaze. The blonde pulled her closer as he shook his head, closing his eyes as a single stream of liquid slid down his cheek.

Lifting her hand, Hinata gently wiped the lone tear while he shifted his gaze back towards her. The gloss in his eyes due to the confined tears shimmered when he suddenly hugged her again, burying his face in her neck.

"Naruto-kun?" she asked, rubbing the backside of his head lovingly as he just stood there, holding her close to him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked calmly, in a soft tone when he pulled back.

"No...I...I can't," he answered in a hoarse voice while she nodded, smiling at him.

"As you wish. I don't know what happened back there in the village with you, but I do know for sure that you would be able to handle it. You're the strongest person by heart that I know of, you're Uzumaki Naruto...you never give up," she spoke with a serene smile, his eyes widening in the process as the blonde stared at her in surprise. Several seconds passed as he continued to stare at her like that.

"Y-You don't have to stare at me like that," she muttered with a cute blush on her cheeks, now twiddling with her index fingers in embarrassment- old habits sure die hard.

His widened eyes getting soft, Naruto grabbed both of her hands into his as he lifted them to kiss her palms making her blush furiously at the intimate gesture.

"Arigatou...Hinata," he muttered, smiling at her warmly while she too smiled back, albeit a bit shyly.

"Oooh, what a cute couple," they both snapped their heads to notice a certain cloaked person sitting on the bed.

"You!" the blonde exclaimed with narrowed eyes as he immediately pushed Hinata behind him, standing in front of her protectively.

"We meet again...Uzumaki Naruto," she spoke in a serious tone making his eyebrows scrunch down in seriousness when Hinata, in a swift move; was now standing in front of him.

"Who are you? And what do you want?" she asked in a hostile tone, her Toyotama Byakugan blazing in a threatning way.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked in surprise as he stared at the back of the Hyuga heiress, surprised at the boldness and the determination in her voice. He turned his head upon hearing a whistle from that cloaked woman.

"Wow, this ascended Byakugan sure is something. You must be glad considering it was Naruto here who gave you this gift," she chuckled making them raise their eyebrows in confusion.

"What do you mean? I never gave Toyotama Byakugan to Hinata-chan here, nor do I have the ability to do such a thing . She acquired it herself, it was because of her own hardwork," he said making her scoff while Hinata gazed at the blonde in confusion, deactivating her Byakugan.

_'The way they are talking...it seems Naruto-kun already knows her. Who is she anyway? And what does she mean by Naruto giving me the Toyotama Byakugan?'_ she pondered, loosening her stance.

"Heh, you think she acquired the next unknown level of Byakugan just because she did some hardwork? Then what about the past Hyuga who have done more hardwork than her? Why couldn't they achieve it?" she asked in amusement making Hinata look at her while the whiskered blonde stared at her with a grim expression.

"Then are you saying that it happened for a reason? That somehow I'm the one who's involved in awakening her Toyotama Byakugan?" he asked making her nod while Hinata clenched her fist as she stood beside him.

"Yeah. But if you're thinking that she reached the next level because of how you inspired her, how you affected her...then you're still wrong. Her Byakugan did not ascend because of emotional or mental stress, in fact...no matter the condition, for a Hyuga to reach the next level of Byakugan by himself...or herself, is not possible," she stated taking both of them by surprise while Hinata was getting a bit anxious.

She had considered the fact as to why she was the only one to achieve something like the Toyotama Byakugan which not even the greatest prodigies of the Hyuga couldn't. Was there something special in her? She, a heiress who couldn't even beat her younger sister? Obviously, she couldn't find the answer, nor could her father or the elders of her clan. They just termed the fact as the pure blood of the Hyuga clan flowing strongly through her veins. And she just accepted the fact as it is too.

"Why don't you stop talking in circles and get to the point?" he asked in an annoyed tone making her chuckle.

"Impatient aren't we? Alright, the answer...is your chakra," she spoke, her tone suddenly turning from amusing to serious.

"My chakra? What has my chakra got to do with her Toyotama Byakugan?" he questioned with a confused expression while Hinata too found herself perplexed.

"You should by now know that you're chakra is special Uzumaki Naruto. It can do much more than just give off a peaceful feeling and heal someone. You don't yet know the full extents of your own possessions," she remarked as the duo continued to stand in silence.

"You remember the time when you talked with this girl during the preliminaries of the chunin exams a month ago?" she asked making them nod.

_'How does she know this? Was she spying on me the whole time.'_

"Back then you poured chakra throughout her body to prevent her from fainting didn't you?" this time her question was more of a statement making Naruto inhale sharply in shock while Hinata blushed in embarrassment as she remembered that moment.

"So you mean, back then...it was because I applied my white chakra? And that's why she was able to unlock the second level of her Byakugan during her match with Kankurou and Zaku?" he couldn't believe it, just because of a simple thing, just to prevent her from fainting, it had led to something impossible! Something this big!

"Correct. It was your chakra that somehow unlocked the second version of Byakugan, and what was left was to just awaken it, which she did while facing a life-death situation. Your chakra, is not ordinary. It's the exact replica of the one possessed by the Rikudou Sennin," she said making his eyes now widen in surprise while Hinata stared at her in confusion.

_'Rikudou Sennin?'_

Naruto however, having heard of that name from the scroll written by Mito Uzumaki, was surprised to find himself being associated with such a legend.

"Surprised I see. You see, the spiritual and physical essence of your chakra is so strong that it affects anything it comes in contact with, whether it be healing injured muscles or tissues, giving off a serene aura or straight off pulling out a sleeping power from within a person. You having the Rinnegan is not what makes you special. It has already been awakened by some people in the past. What makes you truly special Uzumaki Naruto...is that white chakra of yours," she explained, silence engulfing the trio as both Naruto and Hinata sported serious expressions on their faces.

"Still, how do I trust you? You may be bluffing here," he spoke in a cold tone making Hinata glance at him.

_'Just like him,'_ he further added bitterly.

"I have no reason to lie to you. I even helped you during the invasions didn't I?" she asked in an innocent tone.

"You did nothing but whisper some puzzled trash into my ears back then," he muttered making her sigh when Hinata elbowed him lightly.

"That's rude Naruto-kun. You did tell me that how there was this strange ice-element user who had helped you during the invasions," she spoke with narrowed eyes while he just stared at her.

"Did I ever tell you how cute you look when you are angry?" he asked with an innocent expression.

Hinata's frown dissolved right on the spot as she blushed furiously, turning her head away from him.

"How cute. You sure are a charmer Uzumaki Naruto. Where'd you learn tricks like that? Did Jiraiya taught it to you?," the woman asked making him look at her.

"It's not a trick or anything like that. I just said what I felt," he shrugged, deepening the blush on Hinata's face while the ice user chuckled.

"That's another part of your charm I guess," she muttered before standing up.

"So, how do you feel about your current situation? After what happened a few days ago with Uchiha Itachi, I imagined you to now have a darker approach towards life, but you seem...fairly normal to me," she articulated making him glare sharply at her, leaking some killer intent in the process.

"You have no business regarding my personal life. I don't even know you and nor do I wish to discuss anything with you," he uttered in a crisp tone as the woman stood there unmoving while Hinata's posture went a bit rigid.

"You're in no position to threaten me Uzumaki Naruto. But also, do not take me as an enemy. I'm someone you can call as your alias, to help you in time of need. Just because one person has broken your trust doesn't mean that everyone will do so. You have to follow your instincts," she spoke calmly.

"Don't just stand there and spit bullshit on my face!" he exclaimed sharply, anger seeping into his voice as the blonde clenched his fists.

"You don't know what I've went through. So don't you dare lecture me like you know everything! You think it's easy but it's not! I don't wanna hear any words of wisdom right now, especially from a stranger!" his voice got louder as he yelled in the end, his eyes getting red in the process.

_"Naruto-kun, calm yourself, you're involuntarily leaking my chakra," _Ayumi spoke softly, making his anger dissipate a bit immediately after hearing her soothing voice.

"Naruto...," Hinata muttered softly, grabbing his forearm as she tried to calm him while the blonde took deep breaths.

_'Hmm...it seems I was wrong. He is mentally affected, and that subject seems a touchy one for him,' _the cloaked woman thought as she stood there silently.

"I'm sorry if my words hurt you," she verbalized in an apologetic tone, bowing a bit making the whiskered blonde and the lavender eyed kunoichi look at her in surprise.

WHAM!

The door was suddenly slammed against the wall, its hinges vibrating under the pressure. The trio snapped their heads to notice a slightly panting Tsunade standing there at the entrance, an expression of mild panic on her face before it turned to a serious one in just a second after noticing some cloaked stranger standing in the middle of the room.

"Who are you?" she demanded in a loud voice, leaking tons of killer intent making Hinata's knees tremble while Naruto too found himself difficult to withstand such an aura.

_'Tsunade...the slug sanin?' _the blonde thought in immense surprise.

"Ah Tsunade-sama, you're back. Do not worry, I'm not here to hurt anyone. I just came here for a little...chit-chat. But I think I should be taking my leave," the woman said as her body began to turn into ice making Tsunade's eyes widen.

"We'll meet again Uzumaki Naruto. Until then, remember to follow your instincts."

"Wait!" the medic exclaimed, dashing towards her to grab her cloak.

_'Damn it!'_ she cursed inwardly when her now frozen form fell on the floor, shattering into ice pieces while Naruto stared at Tsunade.

_'Where am I anyway? And what is Tsunade, one of the legendary sanin doing here?'_ he thought with a serious expression while Hinata stood there silently, contemplating on what had just happened.

Tsunade however, turned towards the duo, her chocolate brown orbs widening upon noticing Naruto standing with Hinata, his oceanic blue eyes staring into hers with confusion.

Silence fell upon the trio as Tsunade continued to stare at him, her eyes still wide before they softened.

"Tsunade-sama! What is ha...," Shizune trailed when she entered the room, scanning her surroundings before her eyes fell on the standing blonde's figure.

"Naruto...," she whispered while the blonde jinchuriki felt himself getting uncomfortable by their stares.

"Is there something on my face?" he asked awkwardly, taking a step back while Hinata smiled upon seeing tears now streaming down Tsunade's cheeks.

Naruto however had no idea what the hell was going on. Why was a woman like Tsunade, a legendary sanin, crying after seeing him?

"Hey um...Tsunade-sama, is something wrong?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head when suddenly he found himself being hugged to death.

The blonde began to panic as he started to struggle when he heard sniffing sounds come from the blonde medic hugging him.

"N-Naru-chan...," her quivering voice voice entered his ears as he stopped struggling, a confused expression on his face when he noticed a black haired woman standing by the door; wiping her tears while she seemed to have a smile on her face.

_'What's going on here?'_ he thought when Ayumi spoke.

_"I think you forgot the little fact that Kushina mentioned to you about a month ago. Tsunade's your godmother Naruto-kun,"_ she said making his eyes widen.

_'Of course! How could I forget such a thing?'_ he thought in surprise, mentally slapping his forehead. But still, there had been so much going on with him recently that he just found himself getting mentally burdened. But still...

Tsunade had her eyes closed as she tightly hugged her godson, her heart leaping with joy at finally seeing him awake, at finally seeing life in those blue eyes of his.

_'He's grown so much, it's hard to imagine that he's just a twelve year old kid,'_ she thought, rubbing his back fondly when her eyes opened in surprise as Naruto pulled out from the hug forcefully.

"Naru-chan?" she questioned with wide eyes, wiping her tears while Hinata looked at him in concern. The blonde currently had an uncomfortable expression on his face as he backed up against the open window.

"I...I'm sorry. But...," the blonde trailed as he pushed himself off the wall, walking past her to grab his ninja sandals by the bed.

"Naruto...please wait," Tsunade called him, turning to look at him; hurt clearly visible on her face while he just walked towards the door in a hurry- ignoring her.

Walking towards Shizune, he offered the black haired medic an apologetic look before leaving the room while the trio stood there, surprised and confused at the blonde's behaviour.

_'This is a hotel...this is not Konoha. Then where am I? I guess we were sent by Kaa-san to search for Tsunade-sama and get myself healed by her. But surely Hinata-chan couldn't have brought me alone with her, who are the others in this mission?'_ Naruto's mind raced as he walked through the corridors.

"Going somewhere?" he turned his head to see Jiraiya standing at the end of the lobby, staring outside through the window before the toad sage shifted his gaze towards him.

"Ero-sennin...," the blonde murmured as he smiled weakly at his godfather.

"You okay gaki?" he asked as the blonde lowered his head.

"I...I need some time alone," the blonde muttered as he clenched his fist while the white haired sanin walked towards him.

Putting a hand on his godson's shoulder he spoke with a serious expression, "Don't do anything stupid Naruto."

"Understood," Naruto uttered in a low tone while the expression on Jiraiya's face softened.

"I know what happened is tearing you off from the inside right now. But...," he paused before putting his right hand on the blonde's head affectionately.

"I have faith in you," Naruto's eyes widened as he lifted his head to see the grinning face of the toad sage. The blonde inhaled deeply to stop the fresh incoming of tears. Not trusting his own voice, he nodded quietly as the blonde started to walk past him, down the stairs.

Sighing to himself, Jiraiya stared out through the window before he turned around to walk towards Naruto's room.

Upon reaching the room, he was not so surprised to feel the tension in the air. Tsunade was sitting on the bed, her face resting in her palms as she sobbed silently while Hinata was staring at her in sadness whereas Shizune was trying to comfort her sensei; wiping her own tears in the process.

_'She looks so vulnerable now. It's just like when Dan and Nawaki died. What happened here?'_ he thought with a grim expression.

"Tsunade, what happened?" he asked in a stern tone making the blonde medic lift her face as she quickly wiped her tears.

"I think he hates me Jiraiya. I think he's blaming me for the childhood he went through," she spoke, her voice trembling while the white haired sanin sighed.

"You idiot, he may be twelve years old...but his maturity far exceeds the level than you can possibly expect from him. I told you before, he already knows that you were unaware of him being alive all this time," he verbalized as silence filled the room.

"Then it's because of him isn't it?" she asked, her tone holding a certain threatning edge to it while Jiraiya nodded.

"Yeah, I don't know what he's planning. He's already corrupted Uchiha Sasuke, and now Naruto too finds himself on the edge," he elaborated making Shizune look at him.

"You think Naruto-kun too could turn out like..."

"No, I trust in him. He wouldn't go down that path. That's one main thing which seperates him from Uchiha Sasuke," he articulated before turning towards the quiet Hyuga heiress.

"Isn't that right Hinata?" he asked with a smile making her nod, a serious look on her face.

"Hai, I trust Naruto-kun. He would never turn out like Sasuke-san," she verbalized making him smirk while Tsunade gazed at her with a surprised look in her eyes.

"Hinata, who was that cloaked person just now? What did she say to you two?" the blonde medic asked.

"Well, she was someone Naruto-kun met during the invasions," now this little tidbit of information made Jiraiya narrow his eyes.

"Now why wasn't I informed of this?" he asked making the heiress look at him in surprise.

"Naruto-kun didn't tell you? But he did tell me about meeting this cloaked female who could use ice element and that she somewhat helped him in attaining the second level of the Rinnegan," she verbalized ticking off some alarms in Jiraiya's mind.

_'That description...could it be? But why would they come out after so many years? They haven't been seen in action since the Rikudou Sennin's era. No...it could be someone else too,'_ Jiraiya thought while Tsunade found herself getting lost in her own thoughts.

"There was this...one other thing she told us," Hinata started as she bit her lower lip, catching the attention of the other three present in the room.

**With Naruto: Tanzaku Town**

Currently we find the blonde jinchuriki walking through the filled streets of the Tanzaku town, though his mind was not on the various festivities or any other items on sale.

"Oh sorry," he apologized in a low tone after bumping into someone.

"Hey handsome, wanna have a good time?" lifting his head, he noticed a young woman wearing an exposed dress as she gave him a seductive smile- it was late night after all.

Glancing at her for a second, he smiled at her weakly- not understanding what she meant as the blonde just quietly walked past her without saying anything, a forlorn expression on his face.

_'That bitch! Who does she think she is hitting on my Naruto-kun like that?'_ Ayumi thought in irritation and anger as she cursed the woman while the blonde continued to tread through the town.

_"Naruto-kun?" _the whiskered blonde sighed upon hearing Ayumi's concerned voice as he continued to walk through the crowd.

_'Yeah Ayumi-chan?'_ he asked mentally in a neutral tone, making sure to filter his voice of any negative emotions.

_"How are you feeling?" _she asked softly while his lips curled downwards.

_"Just like how I used to feel when I was a kid. But I can handle it...I have been handling it since I was a child after all, it's second nature to me now," _Naruto answered while the bijuu's heart clenched at that fact.

_"I thought everything was going to be fine when Kaa-san came back, when I thought 'he' was with us...but now, I don't know. The whole of Akatsuki is after me, even if I've improved drastically since the chunin exams, I'm probably still no match for any of them,'_ he stated in a dejected tone.

_"Don't discourage yourself like that Naruto-kun, you're not like that. All we need to do is train you, make you stronger,"_ she spoke as he went quiet, not saying anything while she too decided to give him some space. She knew that he would have to handle this himself, she could heal the scars and cuts on his flesh, but not the scars on his heart. They can be healed slowly, and only by love.

Naruto continued to walk in silence as he reached the outskirts of the town, now slumping against a large tree in an isolated area.

_"You alright?" _Ayumi asked in worry as he panted to himself a bit.

_"Don't worry, I'll be alright. It's just that two major injuries, one after another has probably put a strain on my body," _the blonde answered as he closed his eyes, now sitting with his back resting against the tree's trunk.

A few minutes went by as he sat there, taking comfort in the nature's silence and peace with only the croaking sounds ringing through his ears.

_"You are naive Naruto-kun."_

What Itachi said back then rung into his mind as he kept his eyes closed.

_"If someone shows you a shred of pity...even a hint that they care for you, if they share a smile with you, if they teach you something...you immediately trust them blindly. The world of shinobi does not work like that, it is not as bright as you think. You let your emotions guide you, and that's why..."_

The blonde's closed eyes shut, he began to clench his fists as those images started to haunt him.

_"That's why Naruto-kun, no matter how strong you get physically...as a shinobi, you will always be weak."_

Naruto grabbed his head as he tried to clear his mind.

_'I can't! I can't give up! I will not lose myself like this!'_ he mentally chanted as the blonde desperately tried to strengthen himself.

His eyes snapped open when he felt himself being hugged.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, remember that I will always be there by your side. You don't have to let yourself suffer like that," a soothing voice entered his ears as the blonde's eyes softened while he hugged the warm figure back.

"Ayumi-chan...," he sighed, his head resting against her voluptuous chest as the blonde closed his eyes.

"You've endured so much alone when you were a child. I already promised you. You would never be alone. I wouldn't let you suffer alone like this. Our souls are bonded together, not just by any seal, but by love. Don't let hatred and revenge consume you Naruto," she spoke softly, rubbing his scalp with her nimble fingers while he wrapped his arms around her waist making her smile sadly at him.

"I...I don't know who to trust anymore," he muttered in a choked voice making her sigh.

"Don't let this feeling consume you. These things happen in life Naruto-kun, believe me...I've lived long enough to see that. I know when something like this happens, you have a darker approach towards life. Everything seems like shit. The same happened with Uchiha Sasuke. He chose his path, and now you have to choose yours. Don't ever forget that we are with you, don't let yourself stand alone when we are ready to join you. Let us help you. I'm saying this because I only want what's best for you. Please don't forget us. You've already made the mistake of trying to do everything on your own," Ayumi verbalized in a low tone, pulling him towards her.

Half a minute passed as Naruto didn't say anything. Looking down, she noticed the blonde snoring lightly making her sigh.

"Baka," she muttered before her lips curled into a fond smile as she gazed at his face. Lowering her head, she kissed his cheek before lifting her head back to gaze at the moon.

"I won't forget you," she lowered her head back at him upon hearing the blonde's voice, who now had a peaceful expression on his sleeping face making her smile.

_'And I wouldn't let you.'_

**A Few Hours Later**

Currently we find Tsunade sitting on a tree's branch, gulping down some sake as she found herself lost in the painful memories of her past.

_'Dan...Nawaki...,'_ she thought, her cheeks a bit red due to the sake as her eyes were filled with sadness and pain. She usually found herself immersed in her past whenever she had a bad day or it was just one of those moments where you feel yourself getting down. But after receiving Orochimaru's offer a few days ago, she didn't know what to do.

And also, it had crushed her heart today to see her godson behave like that. He clearly was disturbed, and she was just like some sort of a stranger for him- unable to offer any kind of comfort to him. And it was the true bitter fact. Where was she when those villagers were treating him like the Kyuubi reincarnation? Oh yeah, probably far away from Konoha drowning in her sorrows, gambling and losing money like the legendary sucker she was.

_'His eyes...they looked so hollow and haunted. So much has happened while I was just wasting my time here. Uchiha Itachi, what's your real story? Last time I heard, you had killed your clan in one night except for one. Now you, supposedly working as a spy for sensei, help Naru-chan achieve the Rinnegan...which I still don't believe. All that Jiraiya told me, it's just so confusing that I don't know what's really going on. I think I can understand the situation Naru-chan is currently in. But I can't help him unless he lets me in...which he probably now wouldn't,'_ she thought, taking another swig of her dear sake as a sigh escaped her lips.

_'I want to help him,'_ the blonde medic mentally stated, currently staring at the crescent shaped moon with a sad expression on her face. What Jiraiya had recently said to her flashed in her mind...

_"Tsunade, don't blame yourself. It's just that considering the situation he's in, don't be surprised if he runs away from you, doesn't trust you or refuses to acknowledge you as his godmother. I'm presuming that he will have trusting problems from now on, Kami knows it's a miracle the way he easily places his trusts in people even after the way he lived his childhood."_

Tears again welled in her eyes as she thought of the childhood he lived. The things she had imagined for him when he was about to take birth, the things she wanted to teach him...she wanted to do so much for him. But she agreed with Jiraiya, after what her boy had endured, it's completely expected that he would act a bit paranoid in the presence of strangers like her. If she would have been in his place, she definitely would've done the same.

_'You take a mango from a sack and it comes out to be an unripe one, you think all of them are not ripe. One girl ditches you or rapes you, you think all of them are sluts and run from love. One boy ditches you or rapes you, you think all of them are pigs and despise their existence. One close person misplaces your trust, you think all of them are like that and don't trust anyone from then onwards,' _she thought with a sigh, drinking her sake. And judging by the way he ran from her earlier, he was going to behave exactly like that.

Though she didn't blame him one bit, it was normal human behaviour after all. But she would make sure to heal him, it was her role as his godmother and a legendary medic. She wouldn't let him destroy himself or take on the dark path like Orochimaru did.

"Yo! Can I join you?" looking down from where Tsunade heard the voice in confusion, her chocolate brown orbs widened in disbelief.

Standing down there was the object of her thoughts, a hesitant smile on his face as he gazed at her with those bright blue orbs.

She was stunned speechless as the blonde medic continued to stare at him, as if not believing her eyes. Not hearing anything from her, Naruto chuckled to himself softly.

"Well if you are busy, I can come later Tsunade-sama," he said in mock sadness making her snap out of her trance-like state.

"No! O-Of course Y-You can come!" she exclaimed, patting on the branch beside her with a bright smile making him nod. Using chakra, Naruto jumped to land on the branch, his trenchcoat flapping with the wind as the whiskered blonde bent to sit beside her.

She looked at his face with an ecstatic smile, finally being close to her godson, but still there was this look of confusion in her eyes. Both sat there in silence as Naruto gazed at the moon, the light cool breeze of the wind setting his mind at peace.

Both didn't know what to say while Tsunade glanced at him frequently, wanting to see his face, her godson's smile...everything that she had missed for twelve years of his life. Even now her hands were itching to take him in a crushing hug, but she didn't want to possibly scare him.

"So, you're my godmother huh?" yeah, pretty stupid question, but he had to start the conversation somehow.

"Yeah," she nodded with a smile, now staring at him as he glanced at her, offering her a smile before looking back into the sky.

"Naru-chan, do you...do you-"

"I don't hate you," Naruto cut her off as he glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, a smile on his face while Tsunade lowered her head.

_'Thank Kami...,' _she thought, putting her hand on her heart as she wiped her eyes.

"I'm sorry for the way I acted earlier Tsunade-sama," he uttered in an apologetic tone making her eyes widen.

"No no! You don't need to apologize for anything Naru-chan! What you went through...I understand. I'm stunned that you can still smile like this after what your life has been."

_'You have no idea of his true smile Tsunade. It's so bright and heartwarming. If you had known him more, you would've seen that he's forcing himself to smile...for your sake,'_ Ayumi thought with a melancholic expression on her face.

"And even now after what happened with Itachi...," Tsunade immediately regretted her words as Naruto visibly stiffened at the mention of the Uchiha.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, putting a hand on his shoulder as he quietly nodded, now staring at the greenery around them.

Naruto sighed as he sat their quietly, feeling comfort in Tsunade's warm presence.

_'Look at him...he looks so much like his father. Only twelve years old, and yet so mature,'_ Tsunade thought with a small smile as she looked at him.

"So Naru-chan, I heard you have the Rinnegan. What's the story about that?" she asked him with a grin while he clenched his fist whereas she mentally face palmed herself.

_'I'm such an idiot! Itachi was the one who gave the damn bloodline in the first place!'_ she reminded herself as the whiskered blonde turned towards her, smiling at her.

"Well, it's a long story. But man, Rinnegan sure is awesome," he spoke with a small grin making her smile. His grin fading, Naruto leaned towards her as he rested his head on her lap making Tsunade stare at him with widened eyes before they softened as she put a hand on his shoulder.

"I was so angry at you in the beginning...," he spoke, catching her attention.

"I asked myself, why weren't you there for me? Couldn't you have atleast checked on me once? The villagers yelled at me that I had no parents, that they ran away from me because I was a demon. But I had hope that atleast I may have some other relatives," he uttered quietly, facing the greenery in front of him.

"But no one came. I continued to stand alone as no one came. But then suddenly, after one event at the chunin exams...my whole life was turned upside down. People who love me, as if like a miracle, started coming out. I just wish that atleast one of them had come sooner, then maybe...maybe they would've taught me who to trust and who to ignore. Maybe they would've taught me how to control my emotions. Kakashi-sensei says that under normal circumstances I should've turned out exactly like Gaara...if not worse. That I could've been alone, living only for myself just like him. But here am I he says, with lots of people being my friends. Then is my quality of trusting others a gift...or a curse?" he asked in a sad tone when his eyes widen as a few droplets of some warm liquid fell on his cheeks.

Turning his head, he was surprised to see Tsunade staring at him, her chocolate brown eyes hazy as tears fell off her face onto him.

"N-Naru-chan...I'm so s-sorry. I wish I wasn't lied to...I wish I...I wish I could be there for you," she muttered through choked sobs, carressing his cheek. Gazing at her with sad eyes, Naruto sat up before hugging her tightly while Tsunade eagerly accepted it.

"I already told you...I don't blame anything on you. We didn't have control over what happened to us Tsunade-sama. In fact, I 'm beginning to like my godmother, she's pretty cool!" he exclaimed with a grin making her chuckle as she sniffed in her tears.

"Now that I realize, I have an awesome sannin for a godmother! And she's the best medic in the world!" he spoke, his bright grin making her smile as she wiped her tears.

"Your ability to trust others is what makes you unique Naru-chan. The fact that you are still willing trust others like me after what happened, is the proof that you're special," she verbalized softly making him rub the back of his head as he blushed in embarrassment.

_'It's because someone came and adviced me to follow my instincts. It's because another person told me to keep my precious people close to me,'_ he thought with a small smile.

"Aww...is my little Naru-chan blushing?" she asked with a teasing grin making a vein pop on his forehead.

"HA! You're blushing too!" he pointed out making her giggle as she lifted her sake bottle, taking another swig of it.

"It's because of this Naru-chan," she articulated making him sigh in irritation.

"Stop calling me 'Naru-chan'...I'm Uzumaki Naruto dattebayo!" he exclaimed, pointing a thumb at his chest making her laugh.

"Dattebayo, dattebane! You sure are Kushina-chan's son! For your information my little Naru-chan, I've known you since you were inside Kushina-chan," she said making him blush as he coughed at the double meaning of the sentence.

_'The hell does she mean?'_ he thought while Ayumi began to smile perversely, her perverted streak coming alive.

_'Come to think of it...you haven't fucked Kushina since the final chunin exams right? You must be hungry for her, ne Naruto-kun?'_ the female bijuu asked making his cheeks turn redder.

_"Shutup you pervert!"_

"I just wish Kushina-chan was here to see how much her baby has grown," Tsunade murmured with a sad sigh making Naruto look at her in confusion.

"Huh? What do you mean?" he asked making his godmother look at him in sadness.

"I guess they didn't told you, Kushina-chan, your mother is dead Naru-chan," she uttered making his heart almost stop as the blonde's eyes widened in shock.

_"What is she talking about?"_ Ayumi asked in a stunned tone while Naruto was thinking if Itachi had gotten his hands on Kushina. Unrestrained rage began to flood his system as he narrowed his eyes.

"What are you talking about? Who did this? How could've Kaa-san died?" he growled in panic making the blonde medic avert her gaze.

"Naru-chan...it happened twelve years ago, when the Kyuubi attacked. She was killed giving birth to you," she spoke making Naruto facevault.

_"The hell!"_

_'What is she talking about? Didn't ero-sennin or Hinata-chan told her about Kaa-san being alive and her being the current Hokage of Konoha?'_ he pondered, staring at her saddened face with all his anger being flushed into the flowing wind.

Slowly a small mischievous grin crept onto his face as he stayed quiet.

_'Oh she's absolutely gonna love the surprise when we reach Konoha.'_

**I know...I know, not much considering the time you had to wait for this update. But still, had to be done. But atleast you know where the Toyotama Byakugan came from. :) **

**Interaction between Naruto and Tsunade may be lacking, but I would like to have your thoughts on this. Also, just to clear up something, Tsunade is NOT in the harem. **

**In the next chapter, we charge into a one week timeskip and Orochimaru with Kabuto comes into play. Also, remember that in this fic, Orochimaru came to Tsunade to get his arms healed which were destroyed by Kushina's to the molecular level, so keep that in mind. :D**

**And lastly, please review. Because the alert system of FF has been experiencing some problems, last chapter didn't even receive much hits...let alone reviews. So those who do get alerts for this, try to review this chapter everyone. It's a request...but still, don't feel obliged to. :)**

**LASTLY, check out my profile for the updated info section for this fic. It's important that you read it considering there are some things stated there which haven't even been revealed in the fic so far. So make sure to check it out!**** :D**

**Till next time! **

**N6023**


	40. Enka Blondes!

**And here's the next chapter folks! :D**

**Thanks for all the reviews though! Seriously, I'm amazed as to why I'm never tired of reading them lol :)**

**Chapter 40-Enka Blondes!**

_'What is she talking about? Didn't ero-sennin or Hinata-chan told her about Kaa-san being alive and her being the current Hokage of Konoha?'_ he pondered, staring at her saddened face with all his anger being flushed into the flowing wind.

Slowly a small mischievous grin crept onto his face as he stayed quiet.

_'Oh she's absolutely gonna love the surprise when we reach Konoha,'_ he thought in inward amusement while on the outside crafted a forlorn look on his face.

"I see..." his sad voice trailed while Tsunade's eyes softened when she again took him in a warm hug, rubbing his back in comfort.

"I'm sorry that you had to lose your mother on the day you were born Naru-chan. Even though...even though I can't possibly hope to replace Kushina-chan, I will try to become the best mother for you," she spoke softly making his eyes widen before they slowly became half-lidded as he hugged her back, a small smile tugging his lips.

_"Well, looks like you'll finally get a normal mother-son relation Naruto-kun," _Ayumi uttered with a smile making him sigh as he pulled back from the hug.

_"Yeah."_

Both of them stared at each other as they smiled at each other, reveling in the comforting and warm atmosphere between them.

"Then...Kaa-chan is it?" he asked with a grin making her nod with a bright smile as she sniffed back some fresh tears of happiness.

"You b-bet!" she replied, falling back a bit due to the sake acting when he caught her by her waist, laughing at the silly grin on her face.

"Now, let's have a toast for our reunion!" she declared making him look at her in confusion as the blonde medic pulled out two small cups from out of nowhere.

_"Where did those cups come from?" _Ayumi asked in surprise while Naruto just shook his head, he didn't have the strength to rack his already fucked up mind for this.

"Um...I can't drink. I'm underage remember?" he verbalized nervously making her snort as she poured the liquid into the cups, her cheeks a light shade of red.

"Old enough to have sex, old enough to drink," she muttered with a cheeky smirk making him sputter.

"S-Sex?" an expression of horror on his face making Tsunade burst in laughter.

_'How did she know? I swear if ero-sennin told her anything...'_ he thought with a frown while Ayumi was giggling perversely.

_"Hehehe...Tsunade sure is interesting."_

"Oh I know my little Naru-chan is a man now," she said with a teasing grin making him blush in embarrassment.

_'But I've had sex with only Ayumi-chan and Kushina-chan until now. And she doesn't know about Kushina-chan which means she's talking about Ayumi-chan here. Why that perverted bastard, I'm so gonna get back at him!'_ he mulled over with rightful vengeance in his eyes.

"Here," she murmured, offering him the cup as they sat cross-legged on the wide branch, facing each other. Sighing in exasperation, he took the cup hesitantly making her nod with a smile. Clearly the sake was getting to her now.

"And here...," lifting the cup, she lightly, eagerly touched the cup in his hand with hers while Naruto stared at the two joined cups with a not so eager expression.

"Cheers to me being your mother from now on!" Tsunade spoke jovially making him smile as she gulped the sake in one go while he hesitantly brought the cup to his lips.

"Aah! This stuff is good!" she chirped making him stare at her with a skeptical expression.

_"Oh c'mon Naruto-kun! Try it...it wouldn't hurt you know. Besides you need to relax once in a while. If not by age, you're legal to drink if we take into account your hoooot body,'_ she purred making him blush as he coughed lightly to regain his composure.

"I'm waiting here Naru-chaaan," Tsunade spoke in a sing song voice, a giggle escaping her lips making him grumble.

_'Kushina-chan sure is going to kill me for this,' _he pondered before bringing the cup to his lips, gulping the liquid in one go.

"Pffghhht!" the liquid sprayed out of his mouth making the blonde medic laugh loudly as she pointed her index finger at the bitter expression on his face.

"What's this shit!" Naruto exclaimed in a choked voice while he continued to cough lightly, his face scrunched up in discomfort as he wiped his lips and chin whereas Tsunade continued to giggle at him.

"Ahehehe...oh Kami, this is gold! My Naru-chan finally lost his alcoholic virginity!" she exclaimed making him blush while Ayumi too was laughing at him much to his ire.

"Oh shut up! I can't believe you drink this thing!" he snapped with a frown as the blonde medic was now holding her sides in laughter.

"Oho-Okay! Okay! You need to drink it slowly as a first timer. Just try to take a sip this time," she said in between her snickering.

"No way! I'm not touching this stuff ever again!" the blonde replied, crossing his arms over his chest when she got a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"You know, I'm not doing this for just fun. I've mixed some medical herbs in this sake and it will help you recover fast," Tsunade uttered making him look at her with raised eyebrows, not believing her.

"You don't trust me? Haven't you heard that the best medicines are the most bitter ones?"

Sighing to himself, the whiskered blonde scratched the back of his head before just shrugging to himself.

_'Oh what the hell! What could be the worst outcome of this anyway?'_

Taking the bottle from her hands, he filled his cup to the brim.

"Oh wait for me too!" she exclaimed before eagerly filling her cup making him shake his head.

_'Oh hehe...this should be good! I wonder how a drunk Naruto-kun would be like? But for that, I'll have to lessen my chakra input into his coils or else the alcohol would have no effect on him.'_

"Cheers again!"

**Tanzaku Town-6 AM**

"You can't sleep?" Hinata snapped her head to her right side, where Tayuya was laying on her own single bed.

"You're awake too?" the Hyuga heiress asked in surprise, the first set of sunrays now peeping through the partially opened curtains.

"Ahn...I just can't sleep," the redhead muttered as silence ensued between the duo.

"You know...you give yourself less credit, I think you're a pretty strong kunoichi for your age Hinata," Tayuya uttered in a low tone making Hinata look towards her in the dark.

"You think so?" she asked in confusion. Since having brought Naruto to the Tanzaku town two days ago, the two kunoichi would spar with each other in the mornings- wanting to continue their training. Hinata was now more determined to get stronger after what had happened to Naruto recently. And so she would give her all in their spars, going all out.

"Yeah, you severely underestimate yourself. Always doubting yourself is as bad as overconfidence," she verbalized making Hinata nod in the dark.

"You're right I guess. Naruto-kun too keeps saying these things to me," said the lavender eyed kunoichi with a sigh.

_'I wonder where Naruto-kun is right now. It's been hours since he went out by himself. He just woke up...he shouldn't push himself like this,'_ Hinata thought in worry.

Knock! Knock!

Both of them turned their heads when they heard the door being knocked softly.

_'Who could it be at this time?'_

Activating her Byakugan, Hinata scanned the person standing behind the door making her sigh.

"Who is it?" Tayuya asked in an alert voice, the redhead prepared to get in action while Hinata just got out of her bed as she walked towards the door.

"It's Shizune-san."

Opening the door, the lavender eyed kunoichi was greeted to the sight of a sleepy Shizune standing their with an apologetic look on her face.

"I'm really sorry to have woken you up Hinata-san," she spoke with a light bow.

"Oh no no! Me and Tayuya-san weren't sleeping anyways. What's the matter? Is something wrong Shizune-san?" she asked in concern, now moving aside to let her in while Tayuya turned on the lights.

"Oh, I'm sorry for disturbing you too Tayuya-san," the black haired medic spoke while the red head just scratched her cheek, not sure what to do. It was extremely rare that someone apologized to her for anything.

"Um...no, you don't need to," she replied awkwardly when the Hyuga hieress asked.

"What's wrong Shizune-san? You seem troubled."

"Well...it's just that I wanted you to find where Tsunade-sama and Naruto-kun currently are. Both of them have been gone for a while now and I'm getting worried, especially for Naruto-kun," the medic uttered making Hinata nod as she activated her Byakugan, going past it to activate the Toyotama Byakugan.

"I'll get to it right away," she verbalized making Tayuya raise her eyebrows in surprise.

"You're going to use that technique again?"

"I have no choice," was the answer she got. The trio however turned their heads when they heard some noises.

"They're here!" Hinata exclaimed with a sigh of relief making Shizune sigh.

"But...are they singing?" Tayuya asked with a confused expression on her face when Hinata's cheeks grew a bit red.

"Um...I know it is strange for my Byakugan to malfunction, but I think Naruto is giving Tsunade-sama a piggyback ride," she spoke in a monotone voice making Shizune look at her like she was crazy while the noises continue to grow louder.

"Are they singing?" Shizune asked in disbelief.

"That's what I just said," Tayuya deadpanned while Hinata deactivated her Byakugan.

"I think they're drunk," she muttered with a sigh making Shizune almost faint in shock.

_'It can't be! Not even one day and she already has her godson joining her in her usual madness!'_ the black haired medic mused with an exasperated sigh as the trio turned their heads towards the opened door, the drunken blondes entering.

"Weeeeee'll SHWAAAAY...fooorEVEEERRR[hic] thish way! (Original song-My Heart Will Go On-Celine Dion: Original lyrics-We'll stay forever this way)" this was Tsunade singing in her drunk stupor, currently on Naruto's back with a silly grin on her face with the blonde standing at the entrance.

_'Oh fuck,'_ Tayuya involuntarily thought, not believing her eyes as the trio stood there stunned.

"And YOU'RE [hic] saaaaafe on my back and... (And you're safe in my heart and...)," now Naruto tried to sing this time, his eyes half-lidded as the blonde struggled to stand straight.

Tsunade giggled as she patted his head, a bottle of her sake in one hand.

"And my sake will GO oooon aaannnd oooonnn!" the blonde medic sung the high note, shaking the sake bottle in her hands as Naruto trudged forward with a drunk smile.

Silence. Pin drop silence filled the room as Shizune, Hinata and Tayuya stood there with owlish expressions on their faces- a butterfly flying in front of their faces, their mouths opened in shock.

"My Naru-chan's finally drunk!" Tsunade exclaimed with a giggle.

"Into my sorrows, I was sunk," the whiskered blonde responded with a sad sigh making her stop as she gazed at him with a pout.

"I want to kill Uchiha Itachi," she spoke with a frown when Naruto stumbled on his feet a bit as he grinned.

"And break his jaw with the hilt of Kusanagi!"

Tsunade- "And then comes Orochimaru."

Naruto (pouts)-"Spared all those years ago by baka Saru."

Tsunade (rolls her eyes)- "Wants to master all ninjutsu."

Naruto (grins)- "Poor sap's afraid of Itachi's genjutsu!"

Naruto- "Enters F.o.D laughing KU KU KU!"

Naruto- "Team 7 puts together letters F & U!"

Tsunade- "The most famous, reknowned as the king pedophiliac."

Naruto- "Sees Sasuke-kun oh jesus, laughs like a motherfucking maniac!"

Naruto- "Little Sasgay cries in pleasure."

Tsunade- "Its the hickey he'll always treasure."

Tsunade- "Naru-chan powers up, stabs Orochi with a kunai."

Naruto- "Sasgay whimpers like a pup, "Hebi-chan, gomensai!" "

Tsunade- "Orochi has a hard on for Sharingan."

Naruto- "UP his ass goes the Oodama Rasengan!"

Tsunade- "Orochimaru's got a rubber cock."

Naruto- "Masturbates using Sasuke's stinkin' sock!"

"Hehehe...thish was fun!" Tsunade spoke with a giggle, currently standing arm in arm with Naruto who nodded with her.

"Let'sh do it again!" he exclaimed with a grin, putting his arm over her shoulder making her nod enthusiastically.

"But thish time, you be Itachi and I'll be Sashuke-teme! On the night of the Uchiha clan'sh masshacre!" the blonde jinchuriki uttered making her pat his back.

"Let'sh do it!"

"Foolish little brother," she starts, trying to match Itachi's tone of voice.

"Be precise Nii-san, Orochi's personal hooker!" Naruto answered with a pout making her giggle when she made her face all serious again.

Tsunade- "Do you not have enough hate?"

Naruto- "Nah, with Orochimaru tomorrow I have a date!"

Tsunade- "You don't have enough power."

Naruto- "Who cares! With Orochi I had a shower."

Tsunade- "You are weak."

Naruto- "Hn! But Orochi's got a hot physique!"

Tsunade- "You're sick."

Naruto- "Me? Oh yeah, it's cause last night Orochi rammed me with his two inch holy dick!"

Tsunade- "Big brother gets riled, spikes up his chakra."

Naruto- "Mangekyou goes wild, and we know its SAYONARA!"

"Hehehe...thwish was goood [hic] Naru-chan! Let'sh do this AGAIN!" Tsunade cheered, her cheeks red.

**Kumogakure- With Kirabi**

_'My enka sense is tingling...somebody just performed the holy ritual ,'_ the hachibi jinchuriki thought, his dark shades twinkling in a mysterious way.

**Back to the Drunken Blondes!**

"Yosh! Thish time you'll-" Naruto paused, now noticing the silent crowd in front of them through his hazy eyes.

Tsunade too turned her head to stare at them with half lidded eyes for some seconds before she giggled to herself.

"Ohayou!"

THUD!

Hinata and Tayuya were snapped out of their trance-like states when Shizune fainted.

"Shizune-san!" Hinata exclaimed as she bent down to pick up the medic while Tsunade slowly slid out of Naruto's arms.

"Oh look! Shizune shlept on the floor!" she pointed towards the laying body on the floor, giggling all the while as Naruto too started to laugh.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Poor lady! She doeshn't even know where to shhleep!" he yelled as their laughter got louder making Tayuya sigh in irritation.

"Fucking idiots," she muttered under her breath, now quietly walking towards the door to lock it- pushing Naruto out of her way.

"OI! Watcsh where you're walking shound shit!" he uttered making a vein pop on her forehead while Hinata sighed to herself as she carried Shizune's form to her bed.

"YEAH! Watcsh it you red shit! Don't mesh with my shon!" Tsunade yelled with a drunk frown on her face making the former Oto kunoichi's eyes twitch in irritation.

Locking the door, she turned around to glare at the duo staring at her along with Hinata, not knowing what to do in this situation.

"Hinata, lets just knock them out and go to sleep," she spoke, running a hand over her face in exasperation.

"Watcsh the birdiiieee," Naruto slurred as he showed the red head his middle finger making her grit her teeth in anger.

_'Why this motherfucking shit...'_

"Khehehehe! That wash funny Naru-chan!" Tsunade exclaimed with a giggle when suddenly her eyes rolled back into her head. Her form fell into Hinata's arms who had, using Toyotama Byakugan, struck a chakra point/pressure point on the back of her neck just like she had done with Kankurou a month ago during the preliminaries.

"Hey! What did you do Hinata-chan?" the drunk blonde jinchuriki asked with a pout making the Hyuga heiress blush at the cute expression on his face. Sensing his distracted state, Tayuya sneakily dashed towards him as she went for a chop at his side neck when suddenly her attacking hand was caught by Naruto, who was still staring at Hinata with hazy eyes.

"Oh no...I will not go down sho eashily like Tshunade Kaa-chan," he mumbled while the redhead looked at him with widened eyes.

_'How in the fucking world...'_ she thought in shock as the blonde turned to grin at her, his eyes closed. A light blush formed on her face as she frowned deeply whereas Hinata put Tsunade on the other empty bed.

Tayuya struggled to free her hand but was surprised at his strong grip as the whiskered blonde continued to smile when suddenly his body went limp as he fell on Tayuya making both of them descend to the floor.

Thud!

"Ow!" the red head exclaimed as she nursed her head, her cheeks a light shade of pink as Naruto currently laid on top of her.

_'It...strangely feels good...having a male on top of me,'_ the former Oto kunoichi mused, her blush darkening at the thought.

"Hinata! I need a hand here!" she whispered harshly as the heiress sped to her. Grabbing the blonde's arms, she was about to lift him when suddenly in a blur, he jumped off of Tayuya, flipping back on his hands to stand in front of the window- facing the duo while snoring lightly.

Both Hinata and Tayuya remained in their places unmoved, not knowing what had happened as they stared at each other speechless.

"W-What just happened?" Hinata asked with wide eyes as Tayuya stood up, now staring at the snoring Naruto in front of them.

"He's sleeping and yet...somehow still standing," the red head whispered to herself in disbelief while Hinata too turned around to gaze worriedly at the object of her affection.

"Is he okay?" she questioned making the red haired kunoichi roll her eyes.

"Of course he is. We just need to render him unconscious. Right now he's just sleeping in his drunken state," she spoke quietly making the lavender eyed kunoichi nod. Slowly walking towards him, Hinata activated her Toyotama Byakugan as she prepared to strike his pressure point.

Now standing on his left, she went for a finger strike on his back neck when he caught her wrist, his arm being a blur to Tayuya while Hinata's eyes widened in shock.

She looked back at Tayuya to find her lost too. What was going on? They were easily able to knock out Tsunade, one of the sanin while Naruto, even in this state was on full alert to any kind of attacks.

Taking out a shuriken, the red head threw it towards the blonde when the index finger of his left hand caught the weapon (through its hole in the middle) easily.

"Tayuya!" Hinata hissed angrily, glaring at the red head who merely shrugged.

"It was only going to graze his cheek at most, nothing else," she replied as Hinata retracted her hand, noticing that the blonde's grip was much gentler in case of hers as compared to Tayuya.

"What do we do? It seems he's totally aware of his surroundings even in his drunk state," Hinata spoke, holding his arm softly when she glanced at the red head to notice her folding up the sleeves of her black T-shirt.

"Simple, you keep a hold on him and I'll knock him out!" she whispered with an evil grin, cracking her knuckles making the Hyuuga's eyes widen in shock.

"W-Wait! What if he attacks us back? I can't fight Naru-kun!" the lavender eyed kunoichi uttered frantically while Tayuya began to stretch her arms.

"Then just hold him, I'll do the rest," sighing to herself, the former Oto kunoichi dashed towards the duo while Hinata tightened her grip on his arms.

_'I don't like this.'_

**Outside the Hotel- 6:30 AM**

"I wonder if I'll find any babe at this time. Damn I'm horny," a middle-aged man, walking through the vacant streets muttered to himself with a sigh when he heard some noises- coming from a first floor room of the hotel beside him.

"AH IT HURTS!"

"TAYUYA-SAN! NOT SO HARD!"

"OH FUCK! WHAT'S THIS GUY MADE OF?"

"I CAN'T HOLD IT ANY LONGER!"

"JUST A LITTLE MORE! C'MON PUSH!"

"YES! A BIT MORE HARDER!"

"ARGH! I'M GONNA RIP YOUR ASS OFF!"

"DON'T SCREAM TAYUYA-SAN! YOU'LL WAKE UP THE OTHERS!"

"WELL YOUR SCREAMING TOO!"

"Oh sorry. AND WHERE'S THE GODDAMN FLUTE!"

"IT'S TWELVE INCHES LONG! I CAN'T HOLD IT EFFECTIVELY WITH MY HANDS TIED LIKE THIS!

"YOU CAN'T TAME ME BITCHESH!"

And here we find the same man masturbating by the wall to which the window for that room was attached, trying to relieve himself.

_'Threesome...futanari...twelve inch flute...lucky bastard! Shit I'm cumming!'_

**An Hour Later- The Hotel**

_'Ah man...that chick sure was rough,'_ Jiraiya thought with a sigh as he straightened his back, his expression contorted into that of slight pain when he noticed the lights of Hinata's and Tayuya's room still on from underneath the door.

His expression turned into that of confusion as the sanin tried to turn the knob when he noticed the door was locked. Shrugging to himself, the toad sage entered his room on the opposite side as he stretched his arms- yawning in the process.

If Jiraiya had entered the room via shunshin, he would've stumbled onto a sight you don't see everyday.

Tsunade and Shizune resting on the bed aside, Hinata was sitting with her back pressed against the wall (just beneath the window) with the back of Naruto's head pushed into her breast. Even in her sleep, it looked like the Hyuga heiress was blushing lightly, a peaceful expression on her face with her arms gently wrapped around the sleeping blonde's neck. On Naruto's chest was resting Tayuya's head, a small frown on her face as she snuggled her face into his chest. Naruto's right arm was resting on Tayuya's waist while her right arm was wrapped around his stomach, muttering something in her sleep.

"Baka...drunk...shithead..."

Inside Naruto's mindscape though, it was not so peaceful.

**Naruto's Mindscape (Warning for the kids!)**

"Ah yes! H-Harder...it feels so great!" Ayumi moaned in ecstasy, her eyes closed in pleasure with her hands resting on Naruto's shoulder as he banged her back and forth.

"You're...sho tight!" the whiskered blonde exclaimed in pleasure, still in his drunk state while his eyes were filled with lust and desire. Ayumi's back was pressed against a tree's trunk, her slim legs wrapped around the blonde's waist as he went all out with his animalistic thrusts.

"Ah ah ah! S-So good..." her voice trailed, skin glistening with sweat as she panted in pleasure and sexual exertion. Naruto started to rub her voluptous, sweaty and soft breasts roughly, his fingers as if melting into her milk creamy skin making Ayumi moan louder as she pushed out her chest, her back arched for she wanted him to grope her tits more.

"O-Oh Kami...," she panted, unbelievable pleasure coursing through her system as Naruto too groaned in pleasure.

It had just happened so suddenly. After Tayuya and Hinata were somehow able to knock him unconscious, the drunk Naruto had entered the mindscape. Getting a bit worried, the bijuu had decided to leak a bit of her chakra back into his system to remove the effects of alcohol when he had immediately crashed his lips onto hers.

With such ferocity and passion did he began to make out with her that it had immediately made her weak in the knees, her mind blown back by 'out of the world' kiss. And after that, things started to pick as Naruto totally dominated her, surprising her as she could do nothing but moan his name all the while.

Now grabbing her chin gently, he again began to make out with her passionately; one of his hands were still fondling her mounds as he continued to fuck her making Ayumi's toes curl in mind boggling euphoria.

_'Drunk Naruto-kun...soooo sexy...'_

**Timeskip: Five Days Later: Konoha: Hokage's office- 9 AM (A/N- Aside from minor editing from me, this part was written by **_**'ncpfan'**_**, so credit goes to him!)**

Currently we find Kushina drowning herself in paperwork. Her eyes were half lidded as she tried to concentrate at the task on hand. A yawn escaped her lips as the godaime Hokage pulled herself back into her comfy chair, her eyes closed in exhaustion due to working all night. She could've used kage bunshin for the work, but it was difficult for her to sleep as a certain blonde kept invading her thoughts. Just yesterday she had received the message that Jiraiya had found Tsunade and that the slug sanin had initialized Naruto's treatment- that had made her sigh in relief, the fact that Naruto was going to be alright had made her heart beat stronger. And she was excited that they were going to return today. Apparently Tsunade had asked Naruto to rest for a week before travelling back to Konoha. And according to Kushina, it was a wide decision. Naruto had to be at full strength when they would travel back to Konoha. With the whole of Akatsuki on his tail, they couldn't risk anything.

She opened her violet eyes, staring absent-mindedly at the ceiling as the morning sunrays reflected off her form.

_'Naru-kun...,' _eyes grew soft as she put a hand over her heart.

It was so amazing to her that in the short time, at least from her perspective, between when she had given birth to Naruto and the present day, how her feelings had changed so much! She never would have imagined that she could love anyone more than Minato, and yet, while her love for Minato had burned as brightly as the sun itself, they couldn't light a candle next to the intensity of the love she bore for her precious baby and lover!

Their relationship was so complicated, but so fulfilling and enthralling at the same time. They were happy with each other, they completed each other, and even in their conflicts, the love was there. It was awe-inspiring to Kushina that Naruto was such a strong, warm compassionate and forgiving soul…even towards those who had hurt him so aggregiously.

It was that very image that brought Kushina's thoughts back to that wonderful and horrible day – the day where she entered her twelve-years old son's life one hour after giving birth to him. In her disorientation at what had just happened, she had to rely on her finely-honed instincts to give herself some measure of internal solid ground to stand on. But the things she said to him, the way she looked at him…she had apologized in the moment once she had recognized him, and he had accepted that apology. But it wasn't until after she had experienced them from his point of view when she had gone through his memories that she could even begin to understand just what it was she had done to him. She couldn't help but think back on that moment, remembering every word she spoke exactly as he had heard it, and the feelings that stormed their way through his being when he had been on the receiving end of her glare towards him; every contorted facial muscle in her snarl, every vivid detail of her face as she regarded him as a potential threat and enemy, brandishing a kunai in order to defend herself…

_"Stay right where you are, don't come near me. One wrong move, and you'll be wiped from the face of this planet." _

And then the glare; that wary, warning glare that she saw through Naruto's eyes – he felt in that moment that she was just like the villagers who had scorned and abused him all his life, even with his mind, and Ayumi, trying to tell him otherwise. The indescribable pain of meeting the one person that he was sure would unconditionally love him without hesitation, only to say what she said to him and look at him like she did… oh, Kami, how she had hurt him…how she had done more in that moment to break his heart and spirit than anyone ever had, and given the life he'd led to that point, that was saying something. She remembered how he froze upon hearing her warning. The expression in his eyes – pain – horrible, indescribable pain; it didn't have any place in the eyes of a child his age, even if said child was a ninja.

She remembered the anguished tears that followed a moment after, and then the flashbacks that echoed through his mind that she had caused.

_"Get away from me, demon!" _

_"Why can't you just leave us?" _

_"Don't come near me and my son, you got that?" _

_"You're just a pathetic excuse for existence on this planet!"_

Tears began to flow from her eyes, just like they did every time she thought about it. She remembered the pain that was so intense within her precious boy's already-wounded heart that it manifested itself almost physically. She brought a hand up to her own chest involuntarily as the memory of the sensation came back to her. She hadn't known what was going on. How could she? But she knew that Naruto didn't hold it against her in any way. But still, every now and again, she would see that involuntary flash of pain in Naruto's eyes. He hadn't forgotten; he would likely never forget that moment. That flash would appear in his eyes at certain times in response to certain things – the tone of voice she used when she was being firm or annoyed…or speaking coldly in an effort to avoid blowing her top, the way she adopted certain battle stances if she was training with a kunai, and such.

She could tell that she would have to become much more careful with how she spoke to him. She shuddered to think what might have happened had she not gone and chased after him when he ran from her in anguished terror, reeling from how he thought she was looking at him like he was…a monster. He might have done something desperate – she knew that he had been in enough pain to possibly make an attempt to end it all, right then and there. How could he ever forget something like that? She knew that nobody else could have ever hurt him to such a degree, and that he'd never experience that degree of emotional turmoil for as long as he lived. How could he ever forget something like that? Kushina knew that she would probably never forgive herself for it, even if the pain she caused was completely unintentional. But it hurt…it hurt to remember just what it was she did to him. It hurt so intensely, especially since she knew and understood from his perspective just what it was she had caused him to experience in that moment. She couldn't have even fathomed what she might have done had she been the one in his shoes at that moment in time. It was one of those issues that served to further complicate their relationship.

She loved him more than she had ever loved any other soul on Earth. Naruto knew that beyond any shadow of a doubt, but the pain of that moment was still there…and it still haunted him. It frightened her, as well, especially as she would say or do things in such a way that would bring it all right back up to the forefront of Naruto's mind as though it had happened yesterday. Those moments where she could see the pain in his eyes – the pain she saw there didn't seem to lessen over time. It seemed to be that much more pronounced after what Itachi had done to him – oh, as Kami was her witness, she would make sure that Itachi Uchiha was brought in alive, and she would make him pay a thousand times over for what he did to her son before making sure he died an inhumanly…slow…death!

Reflecting on her beloved's current state brought about several questions in the red-haired Hokage's mind: What had transpired between them when she first saw him, and the things he felt as a result – was this something that she needed to talk about with him? Were there still unresolved issues within Naruto's soul that had been brought about or magnified by that moment? How could she even broach such a painful topic with him? Would bringing it up do more harm than good, even though her goal would be to help him ease the pain that came from that experience? Realizing that she couldn't answer these questions right now, she closed her eyes and breathed deeply in an effort to calm herself. Wiping her eyes dry after she had regained her composure, she brought herself back to the task at hand.

_'I just want him back in my arms.'_

**'ncpfan's part ends!**

**Tanzaku Town: Outskirts: 10 AM **

"Okay, you sure you do not want to use the Rinnegan?" Jiraiya asked with a serious expression, now standing in a clearing of the forests on the outskirts of the town.

Standing opposite to him was a completely healed Naruto, a grave expression on the blonde's face as he nodded back at his godfather.

For the past three days, Naruto had been sparring with Jiraiya in the mornings with Tayuya and Hinata doing their own training. The rest of their day would usually be spent by wandering to different places in the town. Naruto normally wanted to train more but Tsunade would interfere with a stern voice, not letting him exert himself until he was fully recovered. So aside from exploring the town with Hinata...and sometimes Tayuya hanging along, he would spend most of his remaining time with the two medics.

Shizune, the gentle black haired medic was like his older sister now; always caring and fussing over his health. It warmed his heart, it gave him the strength to counter the darkness that had filled his heart due to the recent events. It reminded him that the world was still a bright place to live in. On the outside, even though he acted annoyed due to Tsunade's and Shizune's overprotective nature regarding him, inside he cherished every moment of it. And guess what, much to Shizune's ire, the slug princess would often take Naruto to the gambling spots considering the blonde jinchuriki was a jackpot- winning those games as if he was born for this, just like his mother.

But after that night, that horrible night where the two blonde duplicates of Killer Bee were born- Naruto was absolutely BANNED from ever touching sake or any other alcohol stuff. It was funny how the following afternoon the guilty duo were lectured by an angry Shizune for their irresponsibility.

In a way, these five days however were like a torture to him too, no ramen. Yeah, with medics like Shizune and Tsunade watching his every move with a keen eye, ramen was banned. Even when he went on dates with Hinata, much to the latter's enjoyment, ramen was banned and he was forced to eat cinnamon rolls or anything else but ramen. And he knew after returning back to the village, the first thing he was gonna do was eat Kushina's ramen. No wait...first he has planned to kiss her into oblivion, and THEN eat her homemade ramen!

Now sitting under the shade of a large tree were Hinata and Tayuya, the duo resting after their own training.

With Tayuya and Naruto, things had been rather tense between the two. The blonde, for some reason avoided the redhead and talked to her only when necessary. And Tayuya too avoided him, the two acting like comrades on a mission and nothing else. However, Hinata and her had really gotten close. Often they would talk to each until late at nights, going so far as to sharing each others life. Hinata often tried to make Naruto and Tayuya talk with each other but it seemed as if the blonde was having problems trusting her- and according to the hieress it could be because of the redhead being a former Oto kunoichi. And because of Naruto's behaviour, Tayuya herself didn't care much. She was grateful that he had saved her back then and had thanked him for it, and that was it. If he didn't trust her, then it didn't mean she would lick his boots. He may look physically attractive, but the blonde was just behaving with her like an ass and because of Hinata, the redhead had remained quiet so far.

"Hinata, why doesn't he activate the fucking Rinnegan?" Tayuya asked with her usual frown, sitting besides the smiling Hyuuga heiress who was watching Naruto, a light blush on her face when she turned her head.

"You said something Tayuya?" she asked making the redhead roll her eyes.

"I know you want to fuck him, but the least you could do is not strip him with your eyes," she deadpanned.

"Tayuya!" Hinata exclaimed with a furious blush, embarrassed as hell as she tried not to imagine the scene.

_'Though, I wonder what Naruto-kun would feel like and...no no no! I shouldn't think like that!'_ she shook her head furiously, shaking off those images making Tayuya smirk. It was so easy to tease the kind and gentle kunoichi.

"I was asking as to why your boyfriend isn't activating that damn Rinnegan?" she asked calmly as Hinata tried to push back her blush at the mention of Naruto being her 'boyfriend', her heart soaring with an indescribable emotion.

"I myself don't know the exact reason. But I have a guess as to why he isn't using it," she spoke with a sad expression making the redhead lift her eyebrows. For the past five days, no one had seen his Rinnegan and Naruto himself hadn't activated the doujutsu even once since he had awakened. And Tayuya, having heard of this mythical doujutsu from Orochimaru frequently, was extremely curious to see it. But so far, the blonde refused to use it.

"Can you tell me why?" the former Oto kunoichi asked with a serious expression as Hinata averted her gaze while Naruto and Jiraiya sparred with each other using only taijutsu as their warm up.

"I can't. It's Naruto-kun's secret, only he can tell you. Besides, it's better that you don't ask him...or anybody else," she responded with a sigh as Tayuya shifted her gaze towards the duo sparring in front of them when they sensed someone above them.

The duo immediately turned their heads as Shizune landed in front of them, panting to herself as she clutched her stomach.

"H-Hinata...it's Tsunade-sama...f-find her...now!"

**Soooo, I know...not what I promised in this chapter, but atleast we got there ne? 'laughs nervously'**

**Okay now serious, you may complain that this chapter had a lot of unneeded content like the bit of humour parts, and that I could've just continued on with the plot, but I was not feeling like writing this time. Really, I had to force myself to write this chapter. :(**

**Also I tried to add some humor in this consider CoMSW has become serious, emo and grey lately. In the beginning, as you know, there was plenty of humour and I want the little bit of humour part of this fic to stay along with the serious plot. xp**

**So the quality of this chapter might seem down to some of you, and for that I apologize. But atleast, there's something in the next chapter you'll look forward to! BTW, Orochimaru and Kabuto wouldn't be the only ones arriving! :D**

**My precious readers, kindly review! And to the anonymous reviewers, THANKS for reviewing and letting me how you've liked the story so far. To my other anonymous readers, please don't hesitate and review (no login required, just click the 'review' button) if you want. Whatever you have to say, I'll be happy to read your thoughts regarding this fic. **

**And thanks to **_**'ncpfan'**_** for writing that Kushina part! Thanks buddy! :D**

**So sorry again if the chapter seemed lacking, see you next time! XD**

**N6023**


	41. I Got My Family Back!

**FINALLY! I'M BACK! XD XD XD WHOOHOOOOOOOOOO! :D ;D lol sorry, got EXCITED! **

**Ahhh...the fresh scent of a new chapter after a wait of long 45 days! Now first of all, I want to thank all the reviewers and my readers who pm'ed me regarding their suggestions and support. Though I'm TIRED of getting those similar criticizing reviews on my initial chapters due to my mistakes as a new and an inexperienced author. -.- For God sakes, my writing has improved with leaps and bounds since last year! 'hmph' lol**

**Anyway, see you guys at the bottom! (those who read A/N's of course) **

**AND MY EXAMS HAVE FINALLY ENDED! XP**

**With nothing else to say/complain/rant/bitch/scream about, let's continue this story and start with the long awaited chapter! :D**

**Ch****apter ****41-I Got My Family Back!**

"I can't. It's Naruto-kun's secret, only he can tell you. Besides, it's better that you don't ask him...or anybody else," she responded with a sigh as Tayuya shifted her gaze towards the duo sparring in front of them when they sensed someone above them.

The duo immediately turned their heads as Shizune landed in front of them, panting to herself as she clutched her stomach.

"H-Hinata...it's Tsunade-sama...f-find her...now!" she exclaimed with an expression of panic and pain on her face.

Hinata and Tayuya were immediately on alert as the duo sprung to their feet.

"What happened Shizune-san?" Hinata asked in concern as she and Tayuya made her sit with her back resting against the tree's trunk.

"T-There's no time...you have to hu-"

"Shizune? What's wrong?" both Hinata and Tayuya nearly jumped when they heard Jiraiya's voice just behind them. They turned their heads to see the toad sage standing with a serious expression on his face when they spotted Naruto dashing towards them, a few trees broken behind him. It seemed as though the blonde had taken a solid hit from the sanin.

"Hinata! F-Find her!" the Hyuuga heiress snapped her back upon hearing Shizune's stern voice.

"Hai!" she exclaimed, immediately activating her Toyotama Byakugan when Naruto reached the group.

"Shizune-nee-chan? What's wrong?" he asked, a mixture of serious and a concerned expression on his face as he walked towards the panting medic, who currently had her eyes closed- a painful expression on her face.

Jiraiya however remained quiet with Tayuya doing the same.

"**Uzume** (Goddess of Mirth and Revelry)," Hinata whispered to herself as she put her right palm on the ground, a circle forming with two glowing pink petals originating from her palm while Naruto looked at Hinata with wide eyes.

_'What...is this?'_ he thought in surprise, his eyebrows raising in shock when he noticed the two pink petals in her eyes revolving around her sky blue pupil with the petals on the ground doing the same.

_"Naruto-kun, you should heal Shizune with your chakra. It seems like she's in pain,"_ hearing Ayumi's suggestion, the blonde nodded as he bent down before extending his hands over the black haired medic's stomach, applying his white chakra over her wound.

"Nee-chan...what happened?" he asked her softly this time.

"Found her, it seems Tsunade-sama is currently fighting two people. I don't recognize them but the third one is Orochimaru!" Hinata gasped.

"Shit!" Jiraiya cursed under his breath as he turned his head towards Hinata and Tayuya while Naruto too had his eyes widened in shock.

"O-Orochimaru?"

"Lead the way Hinata! Tayuya, come with us! And Naruto, heal Shizune first!" Jiraiya quickly ordered with a serious expression while Naruto turned to him in surprise.

"Hey wai..." he trailed when the trio jumped leaving him alone with Shizune.

_'Damn it!'_ he cursed inwardly when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry N-Naruto-kun...you go, I can heal myself. I'm a medic after all. Just save Tsunade-sama," Shizune muttered softly when Naruto smiled weakly at her as he continued to apply chakra to the wound on her stomach.

"Ero-sennin and Hinata-chan are powerful too, they can help Kaa-chan until we arrive. Think you can heal yourself now?" he asked making her nod as she put a hand on her stomach, green chakra covering it. Naruto sighed as he looked in the direction of where Hinata had pointed to, a grim expression on his face.

_'Kaa-san's seal destroyed Orochimaru's arms completely. The only reason he could've come here for is to get himself healed by Kaa-chan since she's one of the best medics in the world. But then...why would he attack her?' _he pondered.

**Outskirts of Tanzaku Town: Several Minutes Earlier**

WHAM!

"My my...aren't you angry today Tsunade," Orochimaru spoke in amusement as he stood several meters away from the blonde medic, having dodged one of her chakra punches.

"Shut up! I'm going to end this today! I shouldn't have even considered your offer in the first place!" Tsunade said loudly, her eyes narrowed as she glared at her fellow sanin. Orochimaru's face quickly grew serious as he stared at his ex-teammate.

"Don't be foolish Tsunade. I don't know what happened during the week that changed your mind but-"

"I got my family back. That's all I need!" she exclaimed with a serious expression making the snake sanin look at her in surprise.

"You got your family back?" he asked in confusion while the two persons standing beside him stayed quiet.

"I don't need to explain anything to you. You left the village, killed so many innocent people for your disgusting experiments, and now you attack Konoha...you have crossed all boundaries Orochimaru!" she spat making him smirk.

"Fine then, if you're going to be stubborn about this, I'll just have to force you," he stated before glancing at the woman standing beside him.

"Guren-chan, take her down. And you help her Kabuto," he ordered making the woman nod as she walked forward while Kabuto shifted his glasses upwards, a sigh escaping his lips.

"Do you want her to be killed Orochimaru-sama? She obviously wouldn't stand a chance against Tsunade," the silver haired medic spoke with a smirk making Guren turn her head back to glare at him.

"What did you say you bastard?" she asked heatedly with narrowed eyes when the pale sanin chuckled to himself.

"We'll see Kabuto-kun. If Guren-chan wants to be my next vessel, she has to show some promise...right Guren-chan?" Orochimaru spoke making her look at him.

"I wouldn't disappoint you Orochimaru-sama," she bowed a bit, a look of determination on her face when Kabuto noticed a shadow on the ground, its size enlarging as a figure descended down towards them.

"Fuck!" he cursed as he jumped back while Orochimaru sunk into the ground, a smirk on his face whereas Guren just stood there.

"HAAAA!" Tsunade shouted as she brought down her chakra infused fist towards the standing kunoichi.

CRKSHH!

Tsunade's fist came in contact with Guren's skull only for the kunoichi to burst into small shards of crystals making her eyes widen.

'_Crystal clone?'_ she thought in shock, skidding on the ground as she balanced herself.

"Surprised Tsunade?" she lifted her chocolate brown orbs to gaze at the sanin standing a few meters away from her, Kabuto standing alongside him when Guren slowly came out of the ground to stand beside Orochimaru.

'_That clan was supposed to be extinct...I guess Orochimaru saved one for his own sick use,'_ Tsunade thought, now clenching her fist as she glared at the trio.

"Your punches may be strong, but my crystal release isn't that weak too," Guren spoke with narrowed eyes, a serious expression on her face making the blonde glance at her while Orochimaru chuckled to himself.

"Help her Kabuto...that's my order," the snake uttered, suddenly serious making the silver haired shinobi silently sigh to himself as he nodded.

"Tch, don't get in the way four eyes," Guren muttered making Kabuto frown.

"Before we start, an advice for you kids...back off. I don't think you know what you are up against. That man standing behind you, he probably plans on using both of you to get me," Tsunade verbalized making Orochimaru smirk while Guren growled at her.

"I haven't asked for your pity!" her black eyes cold when she started to go through a few hand seals.

"**Shouton: Shouhari! **(Crystal Release: Crystal Needles)," she exclaimed, her hand held in the 'dragon' hand seal as several long and thick needles of crystal materialized around her in midair. Tsunade watched the kunoichi with an impressive look in her eyes while Guren changed the hand seal to 'Ox' when the 'needles', more like spears flew towards the blonde at blundering speeds.

The slug sanin was caught off-guard as the needles approached her, slicing the wind while she just stood there.

TACK!

THWACK!

THUK!

Suddenly an earth wall rose out of the ground in front of her to block the incoming projectiles, the spears getting embedded into the wall, almost slicing through it as they fell on the ground from the other side in front of Tsunade, having created a hole.

'_What the...? She blocked my crystal needles with an earth jutsu...and without doing any hand seals no less!'_ Guren thought in surprise while Kabuto chuckled in amusement. Tsunade however was taken aback for her own reasons.

'_These crystals are really hard...if they were able to pierce my earth wall, then I have to be careful of that girl. My chakra punches themselves can only put cracks at the max on my chakra infused walls,'_ she thought as the wall slowly crumbled to the ground.

"Still as proficient in those earth techniques of yours eh?" Orochimaru articulated in amusement while Kabuto did some hand seals.

"**Chakra no Mesu **(Chakra Scalpel)"

A blue glow in the form of raw chakra immediately covered his hands making Tsunade's eyes widen.

"Back me up Guren."

'_Chakra scalpel? Is he a medic nin? Even so, chakra scalpels are really difficult to use in combat...it requires excellent precision to be used effectively,'_ she pondered when the silver haired nin charged at her at moderate speeds making her smirk.

'_The idiot...he's actually thinking of attacking her head on?'_ Guren thought with an annoyed sigh as she dashed forwards, going through a few hand seals.

"**Shōton: Hashō Kōryū**! (Crystal Release: Tearing Crystal Falling Dragon)," a large crystal dragon materialized from beneath her feet, lifting her up while Kabuto went for a strike at Tsunade's shoulder.

Easily side stepping the attack, an amused smirk was present on Tsunade's face as she brought her right hand in front of his forehead at blurry speeds making his eyes widen.

THWAC!

"Urgh!" she flicked Kabuto on the forehead resulting in him flying back before he righted himself in mid air to skid on the ground, a baffled expression on his face.

Turning towards the oncoming dragon, Tsunade jumped just in time as the dragon slammed into the spot where she was standing a second ago.

"Damn! Besides being freakishly strong she's-"

"Fast too?" lifting her head up, Guren's eyes widened as Tsunade's leg descended upon her.

WHACK!

CRASH!

Her feet connected with a resounding effect as Guren was sent flying back at mind boggling speeds, wind whipping around her motion.

'_What crazy power!'_ she involuntarily thought, her one eye closed as she flipped back in mid air.

CRRKHHH!

Encasing her hands in sharp pointed crystals, she dug them into the ground, small chunks of earth flying around as the kunoichi skid to a halt.

"Last warning to you kids, get out of here...or die!" Tsunade warned, her right clenched fist on display beside her face with her cold brown orbs glaring at Orochimaru who stared back at her seriously.

Guren gritted her teeth as she slowly stood up, wiping the blood off her chin.

'_Even after I created a last second crystal wall, her punch totally shattered it before it did this much damage,'_ she thought, not too surprised considering it was the slug sanin she was taking on here.

'_Fine then...I'll just __throw everything I've got at her__,'_ she thought, a grim expression on her face when Kabuto shunshined beside her.

"Listen...we have to work together to-"

"I don't need your help four eyes! So shut up and watch," Guren interrupted him with a scowl on her face making Kabuto frown at her, having already eaten a soldier pill to temporary boost his abilities.

"I'll show you why Orochimaru-sama values me so much," she spoke quietly, now walking forward- towards Tsunade with a determined look in her eyes.

'_I'll show him just how much I've improved all these years.'_

"Fine then, this time I'll go for the kill," Tsunade uttered with a solemn expression, her pony tails waving in air as a breeze passed through the area.

"**Shouton: Suishō Kyō **(Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Mirror)" the Oto kunoichi whispered to herself as a large mirror made up of crystal formed beside her, it's shape resembling that of a snowflake. Tsunade raised an eyebrow at that as she gazed at Guren.

Going through a few hand signs, Guren put her right palm on the mirror.

"**Suishō Bunshin no Jutsu **(Jade Crystal Clone Technique)"

The light reflecting off the mirror wavered as two clones came out of it.

'_That's a really strange way to create a clone,'_ the blonde medic thought off handed, letting the kunoichi in front of her do what she wanted.

'_Besides, all I have to do is play with them. I know Shizune would inform the others of me being here...they're gonna come soon anyway.'_

Kabuto stared at the back of three kunoichi as he increased the chakra output through his scalpels, making them stronger- an effect of the soldier pill he just took.

"**Kesshō no Yoroi **(Crystal Armor)," the original Guren spoke as a transparent sheet of crystal covered her skin along with her two clones making Tsunade's eyes widen a bit.

'_This girl...she's really skilled. Using crystal release to such a level, it's really impressive. She must be a prodigy to have attained such skill...controlling bloodline limits like these is never easy. It's a shame she's wasting her skill for that snake,'_ she mused with a sigh.

Tsunade let her arms hang loose by her side as Guren along with her clones bolted towards her.

'_I have to make sure she doesn't crystallize any part of my body,'_ the blonde medic thought cautiously as she stood there, waiting for the Oto kunoichi.

"Don't underestimate me!" she shouted, going for a punch at the sanin's face. Tsunade caught her fist easily when...

WHOOSH!

She bent down just in time to avoid a crystal spear. Guren pulled her fist back forcefully while Tsunade leaned back, still crouched as a punched passed through thin air, where her face was. Grabbing the clone's fist with her left hand, she balanced her body with her right hand on the ground.

"Grhgh!" the second clone as well as the original Guren performed a sliding kick, sweeping both her legs as well as her right arm off the ground. Tsunade's body was several inches above the ground in slow motion while the clone, whose fist she still was holding reared its left fist.

"Here!" it yelled when...

CRRSHWOOSH!

"Arghh!" Guren and the other clone exclaimed when they were shot back as a pillar of earth suddenly extruded out of the ground from just beneath Tsunade, lifting the sanin further above in air while it continued to rise whereas the clone's punch connected with the large pillar.

'_What the...how did she do that? I was sure I had her!'_ the crystal user thought as she skidded to a halt on the ground with her clone doing the same.

"That was a nice try kido' but, you still lack in experience," they lifted their heads to see Tsunade standing on the earth column with a smirk on her face, her loose kimono already discarded.

'_She's just toying with me,'_ Guren thought with gritted teeth while Kabuto stood back.

Her clone, which was still standing near the pillar, went through a few hand seals before slamming her palm on the pillar.

"**Shōton: Suishōheki Hachi no Jin!** (Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Wall Eighth Formation)," the clone yelled making Tsunade's eyes widen when she felt light seismic vibrations beneath her feet.

TRRKHKK!

Using chakra beneath her feet, she jumped high into the air when not a second later, eight large pointed crystals shot forth the top of the earth pillar.

'_This girl...'_

"**Kesshō: Rokkaku Shuriken: Ranbu **(Crystal: Hexagonal Shuriken: Wild Dance)" the original Guren whispered to herself, her hands held in the ram seal.

Still hovering in mid air, Tsunade looked over her shoulder to see several large crystal shuriken approaching her at blurry velocities.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**"

Two shadow clones formed around her as they, grabbing her arms, threw her towards the ground at whooping speeds.

"Damn!" Guren cursed in frustration when the clones took the hit, getting dispelled in the process. Still descending towards the ground and going with the gravity, Tsunade's eyes widened a bit upon noticing Guren's clone approaching her in mid air. The clone apparently had used the previously formed earth column as a springboard to launch herself into the air, wanting to intercept the sanin's path. The clone had her right arm crystallized into a pointed blade as she neared Tsunade.

CLANG!

The crystal weapon collided with the kunai, the blonde having pulled it out at the last second.

"Urghh!" Tsunade exclaimed as she was pushed higher into the air due to the clone's momentum, grunting in shock as she held the kunai in place.

"Hyah!" the clone shouted as she put more strength behind the clash, crystal rubbing against the steel when...

CLINK!

The sanin's eyes widened when the kunai broke in two, the duo now descending towards the ground with the gravity, Tsunade beneath the clone as she reared back her crystallized fist for another attack. Shifting her gaze, the blonde noticed Guren standing just beneath them, going through several handseals as she prepared for another jutsu.

Turning her head back, she noticed the clone's crystal fist nearing her face. Ducking her head sideways at the last moment, the crystal grazing her cheek enough to draw blood, Tsunade tightly grabbed the clone's right arm.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" creating a seal-less shadow clone above herself and Guren's clone, she turned her body, now facing Guren who was standing on the ground, preparing for a large scale technique.

"Leave me you...!" the clone was still held by her right hand, trailing behind Tsunade as the duo neared the ground. The clone of Tsunade above them placed her feet on the original one's back.

"Nngh!" Tsunade exclaimed when her clone, using her back as a springboard jumped back, in return increasing their descending speed by several times.

SWOOSH!

With the additional force along with gravity, Tsunade rocketed towards Guren with the crystal user's clone trailing her form as she was tightly held by the sanin.

"What are you..."

Just as Guren was about to slam her hands on the ground...

"HAAAAHHH!"

WHAM!

Tsunade _slammed_ the clone onto Guren, having used the clone as a baseball bat to bring it down on Guren from over her head, leading into a _thunderous_ impact.

CRNKKSH!

'_What the...?' _the blonde medic thought in surprise, her brown orbs widening in slow motion when Guren, who was standing on the ground, shattered into uncountable pieces of crystal upon being slammed into by her clone.

'_The other clone? She must have used substitution behind my back.'_

TRGHHHH!

Sliding on the ground, the blonde snapped her head for the whereabouts of the crystal user when she noticed Guren standing several meters away from her, the crystal user's eyes closed with her palms slammed into each other in front of her chest. Tsunade's eyes widened when she felt Guren's chakra spiking.

'_Her chakra...'_ Kabuto thought in surprise while Orochimaru too had a look of anticipation on his face.

Guren's bangs slowly lifted in mid air as they began to hover lightly, her green dress flapping with the wind which had seemed to form around her. Opening her black eyes, she exhaled lightly...

"**Shishō Tenketsu! **(Pressure Points of Harm and Death)"

Large amounts of visible blue chakra burst forth her body, surrounding her like a wild cloak while a small crater formed beneath her feet. Her pupils began to slowly disappear as waves of dust washed the ground, protruding out of her standing form.

'_This girl...she's even able to release her major chakra points!'_ Tsunade thought in shock, her elbows currently placed in front of her face to block the dust that was coming off from where Guren was standing. Kabuto too had a surprised look while Orochimaru had a smirk on his face.

Tapping her foot on the ground, Tsunade whispered to herself.

"**Iwa Bunshin no Jutsu **(Rock Clone Technique)"

Guren started to go through several hand seals at blurring speeds when she instantly turned around...

THUP!

She caught the fist of Tsunade's rock clone, which had sneakily formed behind her- much to the shock of Kabuto and Orochimaru.

'_Well well...I knew she had potential, but to think she has gotten this good through all these years,'_ the snake sanin mused as he saw Guren skidding back a bit, effectively blocking the clone's punch.

'_And Tsunade's probably the only one in Hi no Kuni who can create rock clones...it's an extremely advanced version of earth nature manipulation and only higher ranking ninja from Iwa are capable of performing these rock related techniques. Even my mud clones don't compare to these,'_ Orochimaru further thought with a grave expression, quite jealous of the 'gift' Tsunade had received from the Shodaime.

"How did you...?" the rock clone muttered in surprise over having her punch blocked. Tsunade's rock clones were strong, very strong...their punches, although not as strong as her original chakra punches, were still enough to break through concrete walls easily.

'_I see...the crystal __armor__ surrounding her skin combined with opening those chakra points drastically increased her defensive strength,'_ the clone thought in realization while the crystal user had a frown on her face.

"Beating you, Orochimaru-sama will know just how strong I am," she spoke, her voice a bit heavy due to being in her 'chakra points released' state when the clone smirked.

"Too bad it's a lost cause my dear," she stated when her eyes widened as her body began to crystallize through the Guren's right hand which was holding her fist.

"Heh...not for me," the crystal user replied with a smirk.

Thap! Thap! Thap!...

"Haaahhhh!" light sounds of footsteps followed by Tsunade's scream from behind Guren caught her ears as she went through three single handed seals, the other right hand busy in crystallizing the clone.

"**Shouton: Shoujinheki **(Crystal Release: Crystal Encampment Wall)," the result was a crystal wall instantly materializing behind her, taking the brunt of Tsunade's chakra punch.

Crkkk!

"No way..." Tsunade trailed in surprise when her punch resulted in some cracks on the crystal wall at best, her brown pupils zooming out in mind boggling shock. Her punch, her legendary chakra enhanced punch was blocked!

TRKK!

Chunks of earth flew as suddenly Kabuto appeared from Tsunade's right side, aiming a punch at the side of her face.

"Too slow brat!" the slug sanin exclaimed as she kicked the silver haired medic in the gut.

"Garghh!" Kabuto coughed some blood due to the force of the kick as he was sent flying back along the ground, his body sliding like a rag doll.

"Don't get distracted Senju Tsunade," the blonde turned her head when she heard Guren's voice from behind the wall.

"Shit!" she cursed quietly upon noticing her feet beginning to crystallize. Just as she was about to jump back...

SQUELCH!

A blade suddenly pierced through her back, extruding out from the other side- through her side abdomen.

"Khargh!" Tsunade coughed out some blood, her one eye closed as she slowly turned her head back.

"Y-You sneaky b-bastard!" she exclaimed in anger, her voice quivering due to the pain. Orochimaru's head was behind her, Kusanagi extending from his mouth. Her eyes widened a bit when she noticed his neck extended beyond the limits of any normal human while his body was on the same spot where he was standing previously.

The sanin pulled his neck back, Kusanagi returning into the snake's mouth which had appeared out of his mouth while Tsunade grunted in pain.

"O-Orochimaru-sama!" Guren exclaimed in surprise, not having expected for the sanin to interfere as the crystal wall in front of a kneeling Tsunade disintegrated showing the surprised face of Guren, her chakra levels returning to normal.

"You have done your part Guren-chan...everything is under control now," the snake sanin uttered with a chuckle as he walked towards the duo.

"Didn't expect that did you Tsunade?" the pale skinned sanin articulated with a chuckle, now standing in front of the blonde medic who currently was holding her stomach.

"W-What have you...b-become you f-freak?" she asked in a quivering voice, glaring at her ex-teammate.

"Orochimaru-sama's well on his way to become immortal," Kabuto spoke, wiping the blood off his chin as he walked to stand in front of her.

'_Her hands...why are they quivering?'_ Guren thought in confusion as she noticed Tsunade's hands trembling which were over the wounded area on her abdomen, trying to stop the bleeding.

"Hemophobia...still can't get rid of it, huh Tsunade?" the snake sanin asked in amusement as the woman kneeling in front of him panted lightly while a look of realization dawned on Guren's face.

"Looks like you can never forget Dan and Nawaki eh? Well I'm giving you a chance here...heal me and I'll bring those two back," Orochimaru said in a serious tone.

"Like I s-said before...I a-already have my family w-with me..." the blonde medic verbalized in a shaky voice, desperately trying to keep a hold of herself. Frowning deeply to himself, the sanin signaled Kabuto to go ahead.

"Fine then, if you don't want to cooperate Tsunade-sama, then you leave us no choice but to force you," the silver haired medic spoke as he cut his right palm lightly, drawing some blood making Guren's eyes widen in surprise.

He brought his bleeding hand near Tsunade's face making the medic's eyes widen in fear.

"N-No...get away!" she yelled, trying to scurry away as her pupils vibrated in fear of the blood. She gritted her teeth as pain coursed through her body when she tried to move, the wound because of Kusanagi now acting up.

"Just heal Orochimaru-sama and we'll let you go Tsunade-sama...I'll even heal you," Kabuto spoke with a smirk while Orochimaru chuckled to himself. Guren however, had an expression of discomfort on her face as she watched how the sanin was being treated. She silently gritted her teeth, clenching her fists in anger...why was she angry by the way? Maybe because she didn't approve of their...methods?

"S-Stay away..." Tsunade repeated in a whisper, now trembling.

"Such a pity, the great slug sanin, granddaughter of the Shodaime hokage now being reduced to a pile of quivering trash. Why don't you just-" the trio suddenly jumped away when they heard the slight sound of weapon projectiles approaching them, slicing through the wind.

Several thick white needles hit the ground around Tsunade, where the trio were standing.

"Tsunade!"

"Jiraiya?" Orochimaru spoke in surprise, not expecting his other teammate to appear. Kabuto's eyes widened in surprise when he saw the other two approaching Tsunade with the toad sanin.

'_Tayuya?'_

"Tsunade...are you alright?" Jiraiya asked in concern, currently bent down to his teammate's shaking form.

"Y-Yeah..." she whispered when his eyes widened upon noticing the wound on the right side of her abdomen. In front of him and Tsunade stood Hinata and Tayuya, both having serious expressions on their faces. However, you couldn't say that they were standing there fearlessly.

"Well well, looks like you survived Tayuya," Orochimaru said with a smirk while the red head clenched her fist, a small bit of fear visible in her eyes for the snake sanin standing in front of her.

"Hinata! Stop her bleeding and make sure she's okay! I'll handle them!" Jiraiya spoke loudly as he stood up to walk forward, an angry expression on his face as he glared at Orochimaru.

"H-Hai!" the Hyuuga heiress responded, a bit startled at the seriousness in the toad sage's voice while she was at Tsunade's side at once. Tearing off the sleeve of her fabric, she pressed it tightly against the blonde medic's wound who still was sitting there as if in a daze, her hands trembling.

'_Why are her hands trembling?'_ Hinata thought in confusion, even more greatly confused as to why Tsunade wasn't healing herself and sitting there in a haze.

"Are you alright Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked in a worried tone as she put a hand on the sanin's shoulders. Tsunade's eyes widened as if she had been broken out of a dream, now gazing at Hinata's concerned face.

"I'm f-fine...just a-assist Jiraiya. He w-wouldn't be a-able to take all o-of them," she stuttered, taking deep breaths to calm herself while Hinata turned her head to look at the trio- Orochimaru, Kabuto and Guren. She narrowed her eyes upon spotting Orochimaru, who was standing there with a smirk on his face.

"Well well, it's a reunion eh? I wasn't expecting you Jiraiya, still chasing after Tsunade?" Orochimaru asked in an amused tone while Jiraiya clenched his fist as he stared at his ex-teammate with a calm expression on his face, drinking in his anger.

"You attack Konoha, almost killed sensei and now you're attacking Tsunade. You crossed the line all those years ago, experimenting on those people...but now, I will have to kill you," the toad sage uttered with seriousness which took even Orochimaru aback. He knew his teammate rarely got this serious.

"And I presume you joined Konoha, hmm Tayuya?" he asked in an amused dark tone, his yellow slitted eyes narrowed as he released massive amounts of killer intent focused solely at her. Tayuya's breathing hitched in her throat as she took a step back, her eyes wide as a bead of sweat rolled down her face.

"I will kill you! Betraying Orochimaru-sama like that, it is absolutely unforgivable!" Guren spoke with a scowl while the red head found herself getting suffocated under the humongous killer intent, her knees buckling when Jiraiya stepped in front of her.

"Why don't you take someone of your own size," he said with narrowed eyes, releasing his own killer intent in high amounts while the former Oto kunoichi took a deep breath of relief, not having said a word as she stayed quiet. How was she supposed to fight? She knew Orochimaru would kill her, she knew he didn't tolerate betrayal. She would be on his personal 'to kill' list for sure.

Why? Why did she have to face them on her first mission as a leaf ninja? She wasn't ready to face them so soon. That kunoichi, Guren, she knew how strong that woman was. And nothing needed to be said about Kabuto and Orochimaru.

"Oh, angry Jiraiya? Does it anger you that I hurt your precious Tsunade-hime hmm?" the snake sanin mocked making the toad sage tighten his jaw in anger, taking a deep breath to calm himself.

"J-Jiraiya...that woman in g-green dress...b-be wary of h-her. She's a c-crystal element u-user," Tsunade spoke making his eyes widen in surprise.

"Crystal?" he asked when Tayuya intervened.

"Yes, she's extremely strong. Her crystal release is very powerful and can crystallize any physical form of matter. It doesn't matter how strong you are, fighting against a skilled user like her...you always have to be on your toes," the red head informed with a grim expression while Jiraiya glanced at Guren who glared back at him.

'_So she has a natural bloodline limit of crystal element unlike Naruto huh? Most probably her version of crystal release is much powerful than Naruto's. If she can crystallize almost any physical matter, then truly she's a deadly opponent. Tsunade must have had problems facing her considering her ninjutsu revolves around earth release. That Guren probably just crystallized all her attacks.'_ He thought before glancing at the trembling form of Tsunade from the corner of his eyes.

'_But to use her fear of blood against her like that...'_ he thought with gritted teeth while Hinata stood up, her Byakugan deactivated as she stared at Tayuya's back.

'_It must be hard for her to face these guys after having to work with them in the past,'_ she thought with a soft look in her eyes when she heard cracking sounds behind her.

CRRHKK!

"Heads up Hinata-chan!" the four of them turned their heads to see Orochimaru's neck tear out of the ground to approach Hinata, her neck specifically.

'_Shit! He's going for the curse mark!'_ Jiraiya exclaimed mentally, throwing a kunai at where Orochimaru's head was approaching while Hinata was too slow to react because of the sanin's speed.

SQUICH!

Her eyes widened when a sharp crystal spear pierced the incoming sanin's head which soon turned into mud as it fell to the ground.

"You!" Orochimaru snarled as he gazed at the new visitor while Guren had her eyes widened in spine breaking shock.

'_A crystal user?'_

"You're getting slow Ero-sennin," Naruto spoke in a serious tone as he landed on the ground, a red dragon having one claw in each of its limb landing beside him, a glowing insignia for wind on each of its wings. Its size was almost double to that of Naruto.

"Arigatou Mizuchi, you can go now," he said, now walking towards Tsunade.

"Alright, see you later Naruto," it spoke before dispelling itself while Tayuya and Guren had their eyes widened in shock.

'_A Dragon?'_

"Ah...the famous elemental dragon summons of the Uzumaki clan," Kabuto spoke in realization while Orochimaru had a serious expression on his face as he glared at Naruto, the one responsible for his destroyed arms.

"Tsunade-sama!"

A voice came from above drawing their attention as Shizune landed on the ground, a pinkish red human sized dragon landing beside her. Running towards Tsunade, Shizune immediately bent down as she began inspecting her mother-like figure.

"Kaa-chan...calm down," Naruto spoke softly, his eyes saddened as he gazed at Tsunade's shaking form.

"N-Naru-chan..." the blonde medic stuttered with a smile while Naruto grabbed her trembling hands, encasing them in his warm hands as he began to apply his special chakra to her hands while Shizune had a serious expression on her face- now healing Tsunade's wound.

'_She has lost a critical amount of blood...her blood pressure is low,'_ Shizune thought when she took out a pill from her pouch.

"Here Tsunade-sama, it's a blood replenishing pill," the black haired medic offered making Tsunade nod as she ate the pill when Naruto lifted his head towards Hinata.

"You alright Hinata-chan?" he asked with a serious expression making her nod quietly, not saying anything.

"You there with the whiskers, how can you use the crystal release?" Turning his head, Naruto glanced coldly at the blue haired kunoichi standing besides Orochimaru before shifting his gaze back towards Tsunade. Much to his surprise, her hands had stopped trembling under his chakra while Shizune was busy healing her.

"Naruto-kun, watch our backs while I heal Tsunade-sama. It will take some time for me to heal her...she was completely pierced through by a katana," Shizune spoke making him nod as he stood up, leaving Tsunade's hands in the process when he noticed them trembling a bit again. Forming a shadow clone, he ordered it to provide her some chakra.

"Sure boss," bending down, the clone took Tsunade's hands and started giving her chakra making Shizune smile while Tsunade sighed in relief as she momentarily winced due to her injury.

Naruto started to walk towards Jiraiya, a serious expression on his face as he glared at Orochimaru.

"Naruto-kun..." turning around, he saw Tsunade looking at him in concern.

"Don't do anything reckless," she articulated making him nod.

Guren however, having gotten irked by Naruto ignoring her spoke again.

"I asked you something brat! No one except me should be able to use crystal release!"

Jiraiya just smirked as Naruto yet again ignored her, now glancing at Tayuya who still had a nervous expression on her face.

"You alright...Tayuya?" he asked, greatly surprising Tayuya as she snapped her head towards him, her eyes wide. She didn't understand, why would he care? He was ignoring her for the past few days and was now asking her if she was alright.

"O-Of course I would be! I haven't even fought for fuck sakes!" she replied with a frown.

"I can see that, what I meant is...are you alright with fighting them?" his oceanic blue eyes piercing through her soul while her eyes widened at his question. How did he know that she was uncomfortable fighting them right now? He had just come and had immediately sensed her discomfort? For the first time, she felt something stir in her heart at the hidden lurking care for her in his question.

"I...I have to face these assholes someday. It's now or never," she answered sincerely, in a low tone making him nod as the whiskered blonde turned his head towards the trio in front of them, now walking further to stand with Jiraiya.

"Kiyohime..." he called when the reddish pink dragon who was standing behind the group, spoke in response.

"Hai Naruto-sama?" her voice was frantic as she gazed at his back, her serious radiant green eyes full of admiration for her summoner.

"Thanks for the help, you can go now," he spoke making her nod, a slight look of disappointment in her eyes.

"Alright, see you later Naruto-sama. Please take care of yourself!"

POOF!

She dispelled back while Orochimaru was gritting his teeth in anger as he stared into Naruto's cold electric blue eyes.

"Kabuto...Tayuya and him, kill both of them," he spoke in a low tone making the silver haired chunin's eyes widen.

"Naruto-kun too? But you wanted his body (lol)," he said making the sanin glance at him.

"I can still do with transplanting the Rinnegan, but I want to get rid of that boy. Guren-chan here will help me fight the others," he ordered making him nod along with Guren.

"So Naruto-kun, I heard that Itachi-" Orochimaru started when something white, particularly a large human-sized spider fell on the ground between the two groups. Jiraiya, Naruto and the others too were surprised when the toad sanin noticed the nature of the material.

'_Clay?'_ his eyes widened in realization when Orochimaru yelled.

"Guren! Crystal wall, quick!" nodding immediately, Guren went through a few hand seals as she slammed her hands on the ground.

"W-What's going on?" Tayuya asked in surprise.

"Everyone, stay close to me!" Jiraiya yelled when they heard someone yell above them.

"**KATSU!**"

**BOOM!**

**Lol the first reaction I got out of my close friend 'Foolish Little Brother' (lol) here on FF was- 'YOU'RE A 'CLIFFHANGER WHORE'!' :D**

**Anyway, here's a fic you should DEFINITELY check out- **_**'The Last One'**_** by **_**'MegaDarkly'**_. **It's a NarutoxKonan fic, and I really liked it. You guys should definitely check it, I assure you wouldn't be disappointed. :D**

**STATS!**

**For those who are just curious and might be wondering, here are the current stats for this fic- :)**

**Hits- 1,096,047**

**Reviews- 2,770**

**Favorites- 2,206**

**Alerts- 1,700**

**As you can see, this fic touched two milestones during my break. First of all, a MILLION hits and favs crossing the 2K+ mark! I'm SO HAPPY! And this story hasn't reached even its half as far as the plot is concerned! XD**

**Anyway, enough of my ramblings. As you can see, the Tsunade I made in this is stronger than her manga counterpart. So whoever wants to, can complain about this all they want, and I- like always, will ignore the flames and whatever negative you throw at me.**

**However, as always (again), here I am, poor author, desperately thirsty for some good quality reviews...'sniff', have some mercy. **

_**'Ye readers show thy mercy!' **_**Y_Y**__

**Hehe...lol. Well, see you readers soon and, have some... mercy **_**'sniff'**_** :D XD**

**N6023**


	42. Art Is A?

**Hey guys, so here's the next chapter-**

**Chapter****42****- Art is a...?**

"Kabuto...Tayuya and him, kill both of them," Orochimaru spoke in a low tone making the silver haired chunin's eyes widen.

"Naruto-kun too? But you wanted his body," he said making the sanin glance at him.

"I can still do with transplanting the Rinnegan, but I want to get rid of that boy. Guren-chan here will help me fight the others," he ordered making him nod along with Guren.

"So Naruto-kun, I heard that Itachi-" Orochimaru started when something white, particularly a large spider fell on the ground between the two groups. Jiraiya, Naruto and the others too were surprised when the toad sanin noticed the nature of the material.

'_Clay?'_ his eyes widened in realization when Orochimaru yelled.

"Guren! Crystal wall, quick!" nodding immediately, Guren went through a few hand seals as she slammed her hands on the ground.

"W-What's going on?" Tayuya asked in surprise.

"Everyone, stay close to me!" Jiraiya yelled when they heard someone yell above them.

"**KATSU!**"

**BOOM!**

**Amegakure: Unknown Location**

"It's always raining here...," an orange haired man, sitting on the tongue of a concrete face connected to a very tall building murmured to himself. A hitai-ate was wrapped around his forehead, sporting the insignia for the village hidden in the rain. He was currently gazing outside absent-mindedly, his eyes having four concentric rings (the fourth ring visible at the corner of his eyes) which surrounded a dot-like pupil, its iris and sclera being light purple in color. Another distinguishable feature were the black rod piercings on his nose and ears along with two spike studs on both corners of the underside of his lower lip.

"Nagato...he's here," a soft voice reached his ears despite the pitter-patter of the rain. Turning his head a bit, he glanced at the blue haired woman standing behind him.

"Very well..." standing up slowly, his black robe with red clouds already wet, the orange haired person started to walk towards the door of the chamber.

"Let's go Konan," he spoke in a monotone voice making her nod as the kunoichi, wearing the same robes followed him.

Entering a chamber, both of them noticed a masked man sitting on a chair, humming to himself.

"Ah, long time no see Nagato," he spoke, his orange spiral mask completely covering his face except his one eye.

Sharingan met Rinnegan as the deva realm sat in front of him, Konan quietly standing behind him with a neutral look on her face.

"We've mobilized the other members and have started to look for the kyuubi jinchuriki in Hi no Kuni as per your orders Madara-sama," Nagato spoke making the Uchiha nod.

"I see, so Itachi did his job?" asked Madara making the Rinnegan user nod.

"Hai, as you expected, when the kyuubi jinchuriki was pierced with the kunai coated with Sasori's poison, Konoha's hokage sent the jinchuriki along with Jiraiya of the sanin to search for Tsunade for his treatment. We dispatched all the members in groups of two to find Tsunade, they shouldn't have much problem in finding her though," the orange haired person uttered while Madara squinted his one visible eye a bit.

"I see...he should be captured soon then. A jinchuriki and the Rinnegan is a very dangerous combination, we couldn't have possibly let him on the loose for years. It's a good thing we made our move earlier," the Uchiha verbalized when Nagato spoke seriously.

"What I don't understand is that why you didn't let me handle this alone. I could've just invaded Konoha, captured the jinchuriki and destroy it in the process. That village is already weak, we easily could've accomplished our objective."

"No...you would've failed," Madara muttered making Konan narrow her eyes.

"How can you say that? Nagato is the strongest member of the Akatsuki, he easi-"

"Right now, even in its weakened state, Konoha is strong military wise. Hiruzen Sarutobi is still alive, he's an S-rank nin and known as the God of shinobi. Jiraiya the toad sanin is also very strong. Then we have recently resurrected Uchiha Mikoto, known as the Kawarimi no Kami, also an S-rank Uchiha. And finally, white Zetsu probably didn't tell you this, but Uzumaki Kushina is also somehow alive," this caused the duo to gaze at him in surprise.

"Uzumaki...Kushina?" Nagato asked in a foreign tone making the masked Uchiha nod.

"Hai, one of the strongest shinobi the Uzumaki and Uchiha clan has ever produced. She alone is a force to be dealt with. It also doesn't help that she awakened the Sharingan recently," Madara articulated making the orange haired shinobi sigh.

"I see...these many S-rank nins surely would've pushed me to my limits, even with my secret here," he murmured when Konan spoke.

"There's still one thing I don't understand. White Zetsu informed us that during the attack on Konoha a week ago, Uzumaki Naruto's Rinnegan was upgraded during his battle with the yonbi jinchuriki. It seems that the kyuubi jinchuriki's Rinnegan is a much weaker version of Nagato's here," she spoke making Madara look at her, staying silent as she continued.

"Nagato's Rinnegan always had four rings, and he never had to level up his doujutsu here. He can even use the six paths of pain along with the seventh path while that jinchuriki has shown no such ability yet. Is his Rinnegan different?" she asked while Nagato stayed silent whereas Madara stood up.

"Hai...his Rinnegan is different from his Uzumaki predecessors who have awakened this doujutsu in the past, but so is Nagato's," this made her look at him in confusion.

"None of the previous Uzumaki who had this doujutsu could control the six paths...but neither did they possess white chakra," Madara paused when the orange haired shinobi lifted his head.

"White chakra?" he asked, a surprised expression on his face making Madara nod.

"As you know, when an Uzumaki awakens the Rinnegan, his chakra temporarily turns into that of a white color. But in case of Uzumaki Naruto, the change was permanent," the Uchiha spoke with a grave expression.

"But does that make any difference?" Konan asked making him shake his head.

"I don't know yet...we haven't been able to collect much info about his chakra. But one thing was clear to me the moment black Zetsu informed me of this," he paused making the deva realm look at him curiously.

"Rikudou Sennin was said to possess white chakra as well as was able to control all seven paths. Nagato, your Rinnegan had four rings from the beginning unlike any other Uzumaki in the past and you can control all the seven paths just like the Rikudou Sennin. You've inherited a very strong spiritual essence of that mythical being, hence your Rinnegan being extremely strong. Uzumaki Naruto however, gained a considerably strong physical essence of the sage of the paths, hence his white chakra and its healing properties. It seems both of you are the prodigies of the nearly extinct Uzumaki clan," Madara spoke in a heavy voice while Nagato stayed quiet, a solemn expression on his face.

"In the past, activating the Rinnegan was a rare case among the Uzumaki clan and even before that, those who did activate it, they had to level up the Rinnegan just like Uzumaki Naruto. However, none of them could ever reach the fourth level like you Nagato. Also, not one of them possessed the white glowing chakra or the ability of the six paths, both of you are special in your own rights. That's why, its better if we capture the kyuubi jinchuriki immediately instead of allowing his power to grow," he finished, silence filling the dark chamber while Konan stood there with an expressionless look on her face.

"Nagato, have you found that summoning contract I told you about?" Madara asked in a grim tone as the Rinnegan user shook his head.

"No...not yet. I just can't locate it. But are you sure that it exists Madara-sama? That's a summoning contract of Rikudou Sennin's era we're talking about after all," Nagato spoke in a skeptical tone.

"I'm sure it exists. Uzumaki clan found the elemental dragons summoning contract years ago. **Kinryu **(Golden Dragon), who was a personal summon of Rikudou Sennin, belonged to that summoning contract. The contract I've told you to find, that was used by sage of the six paths too. If we get that contract in our hands, no one should be able to stop us," the Uchiha spoke in a serious tone, clenching his fists in a bit of anxiety.

'_Then again...that contract hasn't been heard of since __the __Rikudou Sen__n__in died.'_

**Outskirts of Tanzaku Town: With Naruto and Others**

Large amount of dust was currently covering the area while a large white bird was hovering over the dust screen. Two men were standing on the bird, wearing black cloaks with red clouds imprinted on them.

"Art is a blast hmm?" one of them spoke amusingly when the other grunted in annoyance.

"We are not supposed to kill the jinchuriki Deidara," a person of very short stature uttered to his blonde partner, his voice rough in nature.

"Relax...that was just one of my larger C1 bombs. If the jinchuriki dies by that, then he isn't worth my art," Deidara uttered with a gleam in his eyes as the bird descended towards the ground while Sasori kept quiet, not in the mood to correct his partner about 'real' art- they had some serious work to do.

Flapping its wings, the dust around the duo was blown away as the large clay bird landed on the ground.

Thup!

"Nice change of landscape, don't you agree hmm?" Deidara asked with a smirk after landing on the ground with Sasori following him.

"Shut up and concentrate Deidara. We are standing among sanin and the jinchuriki of the strongest bijuu. We have to be at our guards," the puppet user spoke seriously making the blonde's smirk widen as the dust now started to clear up.

Deidara scrunched his eyes a bit, trying to see through the dust as a silhouette of a large strange figure made itself visible, where Naruto and others were present.

"Did I kill them already?" the ex-terrorist bomber asked in an amused voice making Sasori grunt who turned his head back a bit, staring at the crystal dome behind him through the corner of his eyes.

"It's been a while...Orochimaru," Sasori uttered in a rough voice as the crystal dome slowly disintegrated, small crystals falling to the ground to reveal Orochimaru staring at them with a frustrated expression on his face. Guren was crouched in front of him, lifting both of her hands off the ground while Kabuto was standing behind the snake sanin.

"Oh, a crystal element user? Never seen one of those, and to think she withstood one of my largest C1's, she's a worthy opponent hmm," Deidara commented with a confident smirk making Guren glare at him, not saying anything as she stood up.

"I presume you're here to get the jinchuriki?" Orochimaru asked with a grim expression, clenching his fists while Sasori glanced at Kabuto for a moment.

"And what do we have here? Some sort of a gross summoning?" Deidara said in a loud voice making his partner turn back to gaze at a strange slimy structure, where Naruto and others had been standing.

It slowly started to vanish into thin air to reveal Jiraiya and Naruto standing beside each other, both of them having grave expressions on their faces.

Standing behind them were Tayuya and Hinata, their eyes wide for they had recognized the pair in front of them the moment they had set their eyes on the cloak.

"Tsunade-sama, are you alright?" Shizune asked in a shaken up voice, knowing fully well that just what kind of danger they were in.

The blonde sanin, who was still trembling, didn't say anything as she stared at the newly arrived duo with wide eyes.

_'So these are one of the Akatsuki members that Jiraiya was talking about. Black cloaks with red clouds, there's no mistake...and they are here to take Naru-chan,'_ she thought in anxiety, trying desperately to stop her shaking.

_'C'mon...I have to stop shaking! I have to do something!'_, the slug princess thought, clenching her fists.

"Now look at that. One sanin is already out of the game, too bad," Deidara mocked with a shake of his head while Jiraiya clenched his fists.

_'This is bad...no, extremely bad. We are facing off against three S-rank missing nins here and Tsunade here is in no condition to fight. I'm the only one who can take one of them one on one but...what about the others? Naruto, although strong, is nowhere near their level. We have to somehow retreat...but how?'_ glancing sideways, Jiraiya noticed the nervous expression on Naruto's face- the blonde knew what kind of a situation they were in.

Gazing at the Akatsuki duo in front of him, the toad sanin's lips curled down upon noticing Deidara smirking confidently.

_'And they wouldn't just stand and watch us retreat. According to Itachi's reports to sensei, this guy here is Deidara from Iwa, previously a terrorist bomber and hosting the explosion release bloodline. He's a long range fighter and with that clay bird, he'll just follow us,'_ he thought as a bead of sweat trickled down the side of his forehead.

"Alright, blonde hair, whiskers on the cheeks, he's our pal Sasori-sama hmm!" Deidara exclaimed with a smile, a crazy gleam in his eyes.

This got reactions out of almost everybody while Sasori turned his stare towards Naruto, making the whiskered blonde's eyes widen a bit.

_'Those eyes?'_ Naruto thought in what seemed to be primal fear, staring into those eyes filled with bloodlust...and experience, something which he lacked terribly here.

He gulped in nervousness as beads of sweat traveled down the side of his face, taking a slow step back.

_'I...I can't take these guys on, these are S-rank nins, experienced veterans. I'm nothing against them,' _he thought, his fists trembling as a feeling, much denser than what he felt against Zabuza came back surfacing. It was the feeling of being completely intimidated, knowing that you had no chance against your opponent whatsoever.

_"Calm down Naruto," _Ayumi's stern voice suddenly broke in making him snap out of his thoughts.

_"Ayumi-chan..."_ his voice trailed as Sasori continued to stare at him with cold eyes.

_"Don't lose your cool, stay calm and maintain your focus. You have Jiraiya and others with you. Don't think that you're alone in this," _this made him turn his head as he came to the sight of Hinata and Tayuya rooted to their spots, their eyes wide with fear as both of them had felt the monstrous killing intent from the duo. Tayuya however seemed to be controlling herself better.

Shizune too had a torn look in her eyes, although her expression was that of a cold kunoichi ready to fight at any moment.

"Oh, I just remembered something, Orochimaru was your partner before hmm," Deidara spoke with a smirk, turning back to stare at the sanin while Sasori kept his eyes on the group in front of them.

"Orochimaru-sama, I think we should retreat," Kabuto whispered from behind when the snake sanin stepped forward.

"We want Tsunade, and you want the kyuubi jinchuriki. We can fight alongside each other, just like old times. What do you say Sasori?" Orochimaru spoke loudly with a smirk.

"We can do our work by ourselves. Besides, after we catch the jinchuriki, you're my next target Orochimaru hmm," Deidara verbalized while Orochimaru kept staring at the puppet user's back whereas Guren glared at the blonde Iwa shinobi for threatening her master.

"I think I gave you our answ-"

"I accept Orochimaru," Sasori interrupted making the sanin smirk while a tic mark formed on Deidara's forehead.

"WHAT THE HELL SASORI?" he yelled in annoyance while the Suna puppet user stood there unfazed.

"You can hunt down Orochimaru later Deidara, but I want to catch the jinchuriki as soon as possible. I hate waiting," he verbalized making his partner 'hn' in annoyance as he turned towards the leaf shinobi.

"Well, I guess you guys are having a bad day," Deidara commented with a chuckle as he started to walk forward.

"Naruto listen...," Jiraiya began, a grim expression on his face, catching the blonde's attention.

"I'll take on Orochimaru and Kabuto. That blonde guy coming over here, as sensei probably informed you is Deidara. You being strong in ninjutsu can at least defend yourself against him. You should have enough time to do the handseals considering he's a long range fighter," the toad sanin spoke making Naruto's eyes widen as he snapped his head towards him.

"You're expecting me take on a S-rank shinobi by myself?" he asked in disbelief.

"That's the reason Kushina trained you into the ground during the previous month. She went all out on you in taijutsu to increase your endurance, speed, reaction time and reflexes. She trained you for exactly this moment. You only have to defend yourself and not go on attack. Don't fail her Naruto, she wouldn't be able to live without you," he articulated in his dead serious voice making Naruto nod, a serious expression on his face.

_'I don't know if I can but...'_

"I understand, I'll try my best. What about that crystal user and Sasori?" he asked when Jiraiya shifted his gaze towards the trio standing behind him.

"Hinata, I'm afraid you have to take on Sasori all by yourself," he said, dropping the bombshell.

"Are you crazy?" Naruto whispered harshly with narrowed eyes while the Hyuuga heiress stood there in shock. She, a recently promoted chunin, was supposed to take on an S-rank missing nin?

"Oi, what are you babbling about?" Deidara shouted as neared the group, walking casually towards them with a smirk while Sasori, Orochimaru and his companions stood there ground.

"We've got no choice, Hinata...you too Tayuya, take on Sasori while you Shizune, you have to take on that crystal user," Jiraiya ordered in a stern voice making them nod while Naruto gritted his teeth in frustration, they were at a severe disadvantage here.

_'If only kaa-chan was okay too,'_ he thought before shaking himself out of his musings, still a bit shaken up as he gazed at the blonde walking towards them with a confident smirk.

"Remember, just concentrate on defending yourself. We all have to wait for the right moment to retreat," he warned making them nod.

"Naruto...I-I believe in you. Don't d-doubt yourself," Tsunade spoke with a grim expression, still shaking while the whiskered blonde nodded as he took a deep breath.

"So kiddo, it seems you have caught the leader's attention. It seems he's quite afraid of your 'hidden potential' as he says. Your doujutsu, he's afraid of your Rinnegan," Deidara spoke as he stopped several meters in front of them as he put both of his hands in the two bags around his waist.

"I however, wanting to confirm what he saw in you, sought you out with passion equivalent to that of my art. Now that I've found you, I find myself...disappointed hmm," he paused, his hands still in his pouches making Naruto narrow his eyes.

"Don't listen to him Naruto, keep your focus," Jiraiya reminded him in a stern voice as the blonde Iwa shinobi continued.

"Disappointed in leader's fears, disappointed in you. You lack the eyes that leader has, even though you have the Rinnegan, you lack a motive. All I see in your eyes is a mere shadowed child, hiding all his pain and loneliness behind that fake tough exterior hmm," Deidara stated with a smirk making the blonde's eyes widen.

"No power, no will...I see only fear in them," he continued with a cold smile.

"These fake expressions, why so? Are they for the sake of your...comrades? So much self doubt...you, no matter how strong you are; have already lost the battle kid. So why not just come here quietly, and we'll leave your friends here alone hmm~," Deidara offered with a chuckle, now taking out his hands to reveal a small spider, made of clay.

_"Naruto...calm down. He's just playing with your emotions," _Ayumi said while Naruto just stayed quiet, now lifting the index finger of his right hand to point it at Deidara.

"You...," he started in a calm voice making the Akatsuki nin gaze at him in mild curiosity.

"Keep your mouth shut," this made Deidara smirk wider as Naruto glared at him while Jiraiya found himself a bit surprised at Naruto's answer.

_'__**Banshou Tenin!**__'_

"Now that's wha-ungh!" Deidara exclaimed in reflex when he found himself being pulled towards Naruto by an invisible force.

Whoosh!

_'What the...?' _Deidara thought in surprise, gritting his teeth when he found his body sail at blundering speeds towards Naruto who pulled out a kunai making him smirk.

_'He thinks he can kill me with a kunai? He's more naïve than I thought,'_ he thought when...

DHRKSH!

"**Chidori!"**

SQUELCH!

"Arghh!"

Guren's eyes widened upon seeing another Naruto suddenly burst forth the ground to pierce his lightning encased right hand into Deidara's heart.

Hinata and Tayuya's eyes were widened too at the sudden attack.

_'Naruto...'_

Sounds of chirping birds echoed throughout the area as Naruto stood there, his hand on the other side of Deidara's chest as he met the Akatsuki nin's eyes with his own cold ones.

"I don't fear anything," Naruto spoke in an icy cold voice when the pained expression on Deidara's face turned into that of a smirk, taking the blonde aback.

"Oh, but I can still see fear in your eyes. You can't cover all your emotions kid...why so scared of me hmm?" he mocked making Naruto grit his teeth in anger while a white ball of rotating chakra started to form in his other hand when he noticed Deidara turning into clay.

_'A clay clone?'_ he thought in surprise, now staring at the white clayish Deidara.

POOF!

The clone puffed into smoke, having cancelled the Rinnegan while the clay fell to the ground.

The real Naruto however, was standing beside Jiraiya, his eyes narrowed when Deidara's head popped up from the ground beside Sasori.

"He's good, and that pull attack specially took me by surprise hmm," Deidara uttered as he jumped out of the earth to stand beside Sasori, a smirk on his face.

"Using lightning and earth element in conjunction with each other, not bad kid. You're worthy of my art," the blonde Iwa shinobi spoke loudly. Jiraiya however was getting a bit confused.

_'Why aren't they attacking? Aside from that Deidara just mocking Naruto, they haven't done anything yet...' _the toad sanin thought with a grave expression.

CRKKSH!

"Surprise!"

All of them snapped their heads when Deidara's head popped out of the earth from in between them making Hinata and Tayuya's eyes widen in shock.

_'Shit!'_ Naruto thought as he pointed his right palm towards Deidara.

"Art is a...," the Akatsuki nin started with an evil grin as he formed a half ram seal.

_'Damn it! Not enough time! I can't use Shinra Tensei after having used Banshou Tenin just now!'_ Naruto thought as Deidara's body started to glow.

KHRRK!

"Argh!"

Tayuya's eyebrows lifted in surprise when another Jiraiya burst from the earth, grabbing the glowing Deidara's throat as the duo went high in midair due to Jiraiya's momentum.

_'What are those...toads on his shoulders?'_ Hinata thought while Tsunade's eyes widened in realization.

"Throw him away Jiraiya-chan!" one of the toads yelled as Jiraiya threw the blonde in his hands with monstrous strength towards the standing Akatsuki duo.

Deidara, currently standing beside Sasori had his eyes widened in surprise as his own clone neared them at blazing speeds.

"Katsu," the blonde muttered when...

BHOOM!

His clone exploded in midair, wind flowing around them as their cloaks flapped due to the wind. Jiraiya landed on the ground in front of a wide eyed Naruto while the other Jiraiya, who was earlier standing beside him- puffed into smoke indicating himself to be a shadow clone. A yellowish tint covered their forms due to the blast while Tayuya and Hinata shielded their eyes.

"E-Ero-sennin...?" Naruto asked with wide eyes, now gazing at the back of his godfather, two small toads sitting on his shoulder.

_'I see...so the Jiraiya standing before was a shadow clone all along while the real him was beneath us, summoning Fukasaku-sama and Shima-sama. He was buying time for his sage mode,'_ Tsunade thought in realization, inwardly impressed by her teammate's quick assessment of the situation.

"Naruto, stay on your toes," turning his head back a bit, he spoke to his godson making Naruto's eyes widen when he noticed the altered facial features of Jiraiya.

"W-What happened to you?" the blonde asked in surprise.

_'This is the same thing I saw with him before, but back then...these toads weren't present,'_ Tayuya thought with a serious expression while Shizune too had her eyes widened in shock. She had heard stories of the sage mode from Tsunade, but this was her first time seeing it in action.

"Is this your godson Jiraiya-chan?" Shima asked as she glanced at Naruto while Jiraiya nodded in response, now staring in front of him with narrowed eyes.

"I see...clearly he's Minato-chan's son," the female toad muttered, taking Naruto by surprise while Shizune walked to stand beside him.

"Ah, Jiraiya the gama-sennin, not a surprise at all. Each of you sanin seem to have something special in them hmm?" Deidara's voice came from within the dust when Shima, forming the ram sign, blew some chakra enhanced wind from her mouth- clearing the dust away in the process.

"That's a jutsu I've never seen," Sasori spoke, both of their forms now visible as the rag over his mouth flapped with the lightly flowing wind.

"Who are these fella's Jiraiya-chan?" Shima asked in curiosity making Deidara smirk when Orochimaru came out of the earth beside Sasori.

"My my...it's quite rare of you to use sage mode Jiraiya, I'm surprised that you're taking something serious for once," the snake sanin spoke with a smirk while inwardly he was frowning.

'_Damn! This is bad...Jiraiya is extremely powerful in sage mode and with my arms useless here, I'm no match for him. Even Sasori here will have a hard time matching up to him. Sage mode takes time to activate, but he tricked us and was already preparing for it. I wouldn't have let him stay still if I knew he would be using this.'_

"These two are the members of an organization called Akatsuki, and their goal is to obtain all the nine bijuu. As you know, Naruto is the jinchuriki of kyuubi and hence is one of their targets," Jiraiya uttered in a grim tone while Guren's eyes widened.

'_He's a jinchuriki, then he must be the one Orochimaru-sama was talking about before,'_ the crystal thought in surprise.

"Man that makes us sound cool, doesn't it Sasori-sama hmm?" Deidara asked with a smirk when a metallic tail suddenly came out from Sasori's cloak, pulling of the clothe rag off his face making Naruto's eyes widen along with others.

'_His face...'_ the blonde thought as he noticed Sasori's mouth, looking completely artificial as if he was...a puppet?

"Time to get to business, I've waited long enough," the Suna shinobi uttered making Deidara sigh in exasperation.

"Yeah yeah, you hate waiting hmm."

"_Waiting? What were they waiting for?'_ Jiraiya and Naruto thought simultaneously when Deidara pulled several small spiders from his pouches while Kabuto landed beside Orochimaru followed by Guren.

"Alright, you guys know what to do, stay on the defensive and try to conserve your chakra. Don't do anything reckless," Jiraiya ordered when he and Naruto exchanged glances. Both of them nodded at each other before they blurred out in a burst of speed, dashing towards the group.

Shizune, realizing what they were doing, dashed behind them as she yelled over her shoulder.

"Hinata, Tayuya!" this made the duo snap their heads towards her, their eyes meeting momentarily as Shizune relayed the silent message. Although the black haired medic knew it was too much to ask of these two, especially Hinata, but they had no choice in the matter. Besides, Hinata with her Toyotama Byakugan and her clan's techniques was suited for defense against a puppet master such as Sasori, and Tayuya's experience would help her.

'_We have to make sure they don't get to Tsunade-sama...'_ Shizune thought as she turned her head forward in her mid dash, activating her chakra scalpels.

"Hinata! Let's just fucking go...if you want to protect Naruto, then have to show some guts!" Tayuya spoke loudly with narrowed eyes as she too bolted forward. Shaking her head a bit, on impulse, Hinata too sprinted forward.

'_For the sake of Naruto-kun's protection, I have to do it somehow,'_ she thought, activating her Toyotama Byakugan on the way.

"Oh, they're charging head on, this is gonna be fun," Deidara muttered to himself as she stood there along with Sasori, Orochimaru, Kabuto and Guren.

"We have to separate them first!" Jiraiya spoke in a low tone to the elder toads on his shoulders making them nod.

"Leave it ta' us!" Fukasaku exclaimed as the toad duo went through a few hand seals.

"**Senpou: Fuuton Kyokusui! **(Sage Art: Wind Release Meandering Stream)"

"**Senpou: Katon Gekiryuu! **(Sage Art: Fire Release Raging Stream)"

Shima yelled followed by Fukasaku as both of them fired sage chakra enhanced intense streams of wind and fire from their mouth, the fire stream increasing in intensity due to the supportive nature of the wind as the attack sailed at mind boggling speeds towards the Akatsuki duo and others.

'_Such ferocious attack...'_ Guren thought sub consciously, her eyes widened as the powerful attack neared them.

Deidara smirked as he jumped in time along with Sasori. Orochimaru's body sunk into the ground followed by Kabuto while Guren too leaped into the air, barely managing to avoid the high speed attack as she shielded her eyes from the glaring heat and illumination caused by the radiant fire.

'_There!'_ Jiraiya thought as dashed towards his ex-teammate and Kabuto, sensing their chakra while in sage mode.

Naruto however cursed his own luck when he noticed that both Deidara and Sasori were still close in midair, now descending towards the ground.

'_Shinra Tensei wouldn't be effective at such distance,'_ the blonde thought as he formed a half ram seal.

'_All gravity seals...release!'_ he inwardly exclaimed, channeling chakra through the seals on his upper body and legs as he released the seals. The effects were immediate as his dashing form became more blurry, now bolting towards the descending Akatsuki duo.

"Oh look, he himself is coming to us," Deidara uttered with a smirk when he threw the clay spiders towards Naruto while Sasori opened his puppet mouth.

"**Shikomi Kugutsu: Shinshin Happa **(Prepared Puppet: Eight Waves of Needles)"

A rapid stream of countless senbon fired from its mouth as they sliced through the wind, nearing Naruto's approaching form at blazing speeds.

"_Naruto! Activate your Rinnegan!"_ Ayumi spoke in alarm, knowing that he wouldn't be able to dodge such high velocity senbon with just his naked eyes. Not only dodging, fighting with an S-ranked nin demanded for the blonde to go all out.

'_I need to close the distance a little more,'_ he thought, taking some of Ayumi's chakra as he jumped towards the approaching attacks making Deidara's eyes widen at the unexpected move.

'_What is he...?'_

Just as the spiders and the needles were nearing him, he pulled both of his palms out in mid air.

'_**Shinra Tensei!**__'_ he inwardly exclaimed, gritting his teeth as he controlled the technique, intending to aim it only at Deidara.

An invisible shockwave of mechanical force protruded out from Naruto's palms, repelling the clay spiders as well as the needles making Sasori's eyes widen.

Deidara's eyes widened even more when he felt the similar force as before, only in the opposite direction.

"Ungh!" he exclaimed as his body was pushed back by a strong force making him sail away from Sasori and Naruto in mid air.

"Separating us would do you nothing good boy," the Suna nin growled as he landed on the ground while Deidara skidded on the dirt several meters away from his partner, an annoyed expression on his face.

Sensing Hinata and Tayuya nearing Sasori from behind him, Naruto shunshined out towards Deidara using lightning natured chakra.

Sasori's eyes widened when he noticed the blonde literally burst into sparks of lightning, vanishing from his sight to appear in front of Deidara, leaving some visible static currents in mid air.

'_That jutsu...he used lightning to increasing his speed, but...it almost seemed like a space-time technique. If it weren't for the slight traces of his chakra in mid air, I surely would've mistaken this as a space-time ninjutsu,'_ the puppet user thought in slight surprise. Just when he was about to follow the jinchuriki, Hinata and Tayuya landed in front of him- blocking his way.

"Move out of my way you pests, I don't want to waste my art on you two...and I don't like waiting," Sasori spoke, leaking high amounts of killer intent as he glared at the newly arrived duo.

Hinata visibly stiffened under the blood thirsty gaze of Sasori, her heart beating rapidly as she struggled to control herself.

"Hinata...don't waver. He's trying to intimidate us into just giving up like some dick loving sissies. Remember, we have to just keep defending ourselves to prevent these fuckers from getting Naruto and Tsunade," Tayuya muttered, putting a hand on the Hyuga's shoulder as she kept staring into Sasori's eyes, not intimidated by the crazy gleam in them. Living in the streets of Oto, alone all her life, being an orphan and having to fend for herself, and most importantly- after having worked for Orochimaru, she was used to this.

"Tayuya, a-aren't you scared? He's an S-ranked internationally wanted criminal, one of the Akatsuki. And we are...I'm just a recently promoted chunin, do we have a chance to even defend ourselves successfully against him? Blind bravery aside, this is beyond logic for us to face an experienced shinobi like him," Hinata spoke quietly, her voice shaky as she clenched her fist.

"So? What are you gonna do about this shit? Just stand here and fucking complain that how it's not fair, beyond logic for us to face this asshole?" Tayuya muttered with a frown, keeping an eye on Sasori the whole time as she took out her flute while Hinata's eyes widened.

"Are you going to keep bitching that how we are too fucking weak? So you're just going to run like a soar fucked up pussy and not help your friends, your comrades who are in danger?" the red head spoke with gritted teeth, bringing the flute to her mouth. Hinata however stood there, processing what her friend had said as she gulped nervously, lifting her eyes to stare into Sasori's deathly cold ones.

"Fine then, just keep standing there like a pansy, I'll do this myself! You need more than just a fucking dose of S-ranked killing intent to defeat me you cock sucking sand puppet!" Tayuya spoke loudly with a scowl.

"You've got guts talking to me like that puny girl, for that, you deserve a place in my human puppets collection," Sasori articulated roughly making Hinata's eyes widen while the red head smirked to herself.

"In your dreams motherfucker!" she exclaimed, flipping the birdie as the killing intent increased further, making Hinata stumble back a bit.

"An advice for you girl, don't annoy me. That's the last thing you want," the Suna's puppet master warned while Tayuya scowled.

'_Well the fucker's right, I have to abandon my usual battle tactics and just concentrate on being defensive here. Kamasutra knows...eh...I mean Kami knows how strong this son of a puppet bitch is,'_ she thought in slight nervousness.

'_I wonder if my genjutsu is going to work on him. I have to try, all we have to do is stall for time and hope that Jiraiya finds a way out of this shithole we have gotten ourselves into.'_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

KHDDDDHH!

"Should've known that I nor Kabuto would be any match for you in sage mode huh?" Orochimaru verbalized with a smirk, skidding on the ground backwards after just having dodged a wind enhanced fireball from Jiraiya, Kabuto standing beside him.

"The confident smirk on your face says something else though. I know you Orochimaru, even without your arms, you're the most troublesome one here. That's the reason I chose to fight you instead of any of those two Akatsuki members," Jiraiya spoke seriously with Fukasaku and Shima nodding with him.

"Besides, snakes are our natural predators, we toads can't miss a chance to get back on you now can we?" Shima spoke with a smirk making Kabuto frown, who shifted his gaze to notice Guren and Shizune facing off each other.

'_We have to find some kind of an opening to retrieve Tsunade. She's sitting there alone, the only problem is that all of us are busy in our own battles. If somehow Orochimaru-sama can keep Jiraiya busy for a bit, I can do it,'_ Kabuto thought with a serious expression on his face.

'_Even though I told the others to fight defensively...but to find an opening, I have to defeat these two first, and quickly at that!'_ Jiraiya thought as he crouched a bit, going through several hand seals.

"**Senpou: Kebari Senbon!** (Sage Art: Hair Needle Senbon)" Jiraiya exclaimed as his hair turned into hardened spikes before shooting off thin hair needles rapidly towards the duo.

Orochimaru's eyes widened at the velocity of the wide range attack. Kabuto, having no time to dodge, leaped behind the snake sanin who just stood there with wide eyes.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"**Ninpou: Dokugiri! **(Ninja Art: Poison Mist)" Shizune exclaimed after going through several handseals as she exhaled a purple gas from her mouth, shooting it at Guren who frowned as the crystal user jumped back, but to no use as Shizune followed her before emitting more gas from her mouth.

'_This smoke is not ordinary,'_ Guren thought while coughing a bit, having taken a whiff of it accidentally as she started to go through several hand signs at a fast pace.

'_To use such a jutsu, one requires precise chakra control and detailed knowledge of chemistry and advanced abilities in medical ninjutsu. This kunoichi is strong...I can't risk underestimating her,'_ the crystal user thought as she slammed her hand on the ground.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"You know, now I'm getting pretty annoyed with that pulling and pushing technique of yours," Deidara spoke with an annoyed expression on his face which slowly turned into of a smirk.

"SASORI!" he yelled making Naruto raise his eyebrows while the Suna's missing nin glanced at Deidara from the distance.

"Are you crazy? What were you thinking firing those poisoned needles at this guy! We're not supposed to kill him remember?" the blonde Iwa nin yelled with a frown. Sasori didn't say anything as he returned his focus to the two kunoichi while Deidara turned to Naruto.

"Oh well...not that it matters. Sasori does have antidotes to his poisons, so we just could've poisoned you first, kidnapped you and then healed you, got it kid?" the ex- terrorist bomber spoke with a cold smile as the serious expression on Naruto's face remained stoic.

"_Naruto...I'm telling you seriously now, use your Rinnegan! I don't know what's stopping you from using your full strength, but if you don't use it, you're gonna DIE!" _Ayumi yelled from inside, her tone a mixture of anger, frustration and concern for him. Naruto however didn't respond as he kept staring at a smirking Deidara.

"You know, I'm pretty surprised you've got two sanin and some friends with you. Usually the jinchuriki are alone ne? I mean, aren't you guys supposed to be the stigma of the society? Having no family, no friends, everybody hating you right?" he spoke making Naruto clench his fists when he closed his eyes. Deidara would've continued if it weren't for the increase in chakra that he sensed from Naruto.

"Oh, got angry already? C'mon kid, I was only starting," he mocked with cool smile, waving his hand without any care when Naruto's hands began to glow blue before electric current started to cover his hands.

Deidara suddenly lost his smirk when he recognized the technique while lightning now covered Naruto's hands, sparks of electricity dancing wildly around the whiskered blonde's hands.

"Lightning...lightning is your weakness. That clay you're using consists of earth element. Earlier when I slammed a Chidori into your clay clone, you didn't make it explode...or rather, couldn't do it. The moment I hit your clay with lightning, they become useless...isn't it?" Naruto asked with a grim expression while Deidara's eyes widened in shock.

'_Just from that one instance...'_ he thought in disbelief before narrowing his eyes.

"How did you know? Just from one accident you couldn't have-"

"I had my suspicions, but the way you just reacted gave it all. It means that whatever I just spoke was the truth, lightning is your weakness after all," this time Naruto found himself smirking slightly, a twelve year old genin like him having fooled an S-ranked nin sure was amusing to say the least.

"Teme..." Deidara growled as he took out his hands, revealing several clays in the form of dragonflies while Naruto dropped his smirk, a grave expression on his face.

"It doesn't matter if I'm scared or not, if I'm feeling fear right now or not, what matters is that I wouldn't let you hurt my precious people," the whiskered blonde uttered, his eyes growing icy cold when a smirk formed on Deidara's face.

"Fair deal then kid. Why not come with us and we leave your so called 'precious people' unharmed hmm?" he offered, secretly buying time as the mouths on his hands molded more clay. Naruto however smirked as he remembered Kushina's face, her smiling face.

"_Let's rule the village together Naru-kun."_

More faces started to flash through his mind- the fire queens, Hinata, Kin, Ino, Sakura, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Mei, Ayame, the rookie nine, his jiji...all of their smiling faces were deeply etched in his heart. He couldn't leave Ayumi too...he couldn't forget the slap he had received from her, that single slap held so much emotions- anger, concern, frustration, love, sadness...he couldn't make her fuss about his safety.

"_This time Ayumi-chan...I promise you, just stay with me. I wouldn't leave you...so stop worrying about me so much, I'm not a kid anymore," _Naruto spoke inwardly, that long lost determination creeping in his voice.

"_Naruto..."_ Ayumi's soft voice trailed in concern.

"_I can make my own decisions...Itachi-sensei taught me that,"_ he spoke, shocking her greatly as her eyes widened while he adopted his lightning fist stance.

"Sorry, I refuse," Naruto answered making Deidara laugh coldly as he shrugged to himself.

"Just another shinobi with big words. Pathetic hypocrite, aren't you gaki? You say big and heroic words that you want to protect your 'precious people', but for their sake, their safety...you don't have the guts to put your life on the line, do ya hmm?" the blonde Iwa shinobi verbalized while the whiskered blonde shook his head, that old stubborn look of determination briefly crossing his eyes.

"You're wrong. If I die, my precious people will get hurt because I'm precious to them too. So to make sure they don't get emotionally hurt, I'll fight you bastards for them," this made Deidara's eyes widen as he stared at Naruto in surprise.

"I do not live only for myself or my dreams, I also live for my precious people! That's why I'll NEVER give up, remember that you asshole!"

**Well, lol it was amusing how many people agreed with me being a 'cliffhanger whore' in the last chapter. :)**

**Anyway, there's something I want to address here. I see that a few of you have qualms with the current pacing of the fic- being that I've started updating after a 45 days break and that we're still in the Tsunade Retrieval Arc. Now I'm going to make this clear, I'm sorry but this is my writing style. That, and I like putting details in everything to completely nullify the possibility of a plothole because its you same readers who complain later down the road about the plot being weak. I know that I sometimes tend go into 'over-detail' mode...well, I will try to reduce it if it irritates you but my over all writing style isn't going to change. It took me a year to develop my own style, and I tend to go with it, of course improving it with your constructive criticism, but I wouldn't rush the fic just because you're waiting for an exciting event like 'when Naruto's going to return to Konoha' and all.**

**This arc is very important for the overall plot and I'm not just dragging these fights to make it look kickass. This is where Naruto, Hinata and Tayuya's character develop further, other interesting developments take place and something major happens, a major divergence from canon which you'll see in ch 44.**

**SO, I would appreciate if you stop saying 'Get over with the damn arc already!'. I'll just tell you that Naruto and others will return to Konoha in either ch 44 or 45 (most probably 44 though).**

**Anyway, the next update should be around 6th June. So see you guys next time! :D**

**And review too, my updates should improve drastically now considering its holidays time! XD**

**N6023**


	43. Hold My Hand, Walk With Me!

**Chapter 43-Hold My Hand, Walk With Me!**

"Just another shinobi with big words. Pathetic hypocrite, aren't you gaki? You say big and heroic words that you want to protect your 'precious people', but for their sake, their safety...you don't have the guts to put your life on the line, do you kid?" the blonde Iwa shinobi verbalized while the whiskered blonde shook his head, that old stubborn look of determination briefly crossing his eyes.

"You're wrong. If I die, my precious people will get hurt because I'm precious to them too. So to make sure they don't get hurt emotionally, I'll fight you bastards for them," this made Deidara's eyes widen as he stared at Naruto in surprise.

"I do not live only for myself or my dreams, I also live for my precious people! That's why I'll NEVER give up, remember that you asshole!"

A slight breeze crossed the area as Naruto and Deidara stood there, facing each other while sparks of lightning continued to crackle around the blonde's fist.

"Fine then...I guess I'll just have to force you," Deidara uttered with a smirk, the clay jellyfishes being held while the blonde clenched his fists.

_'If I just had those advanced shadow clones sealed up in a scroll with me...I could've easily created a diversion and all of us would've gotten out of here. But I used that scroll during the invasions and since after that didn't get any time to store more shadow clones,'_ he pondered when Deidara crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Let's see if you can diffuse these!" he exclaimed with a grin, flinging his arms outwards as he threw the claw jellyfishes towards the whiskered blonde. Naruto narrowed his eyes when the ground just in front of him cracked as a shadow clone jumped out making Deidara's eyes widen a bit.

"**Doton: Doryuu Heki!** (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)," it exclaimed before slamming his hands on the ground. Earth cracked in front of the clone as a large chunk of it rose in front of him vertically just in time when the jellyfishes landed on it.

"Hn...you think such weak ninjutsu can stop my art," Deidara spoke as he formed the half ram seal while Naruto's eyes widened at hearing him as he crouched a bit, preparing to jump back.

"**Katsu!**"

BOOM!

"Grh!"

The explosion took place just as the whiskered blonde was about to leap, the earth wall shattering instantly while he was sent flying due to the impulsive force.

_'Such explosive power...'_ Naruto thought, his one eye open while blood started to leak down his forehead due to a sharp chunk of blown up earth hitting him.

KHHDRHHH!

Having flipped himself in midair, he skidded back, shocked at the destructive force of the attack due to just those small jellyfishes.

_'Naruto, please listen to me and do it! You wouldn't survive like this against an opponent like him!'_ Ayumi yelled making him grit his teeth.

_"Will you stop it Ayumi-chan! I've never fought him before! Even with the Rinnegan I wouldn't be able to fight him instantly with his unique abilities. I have to observe the pattern of his attacks,'_ he spoke inwardly making her growl in frustration, he was just making excuses!

"**Bakuton: Ganshou Hassha! **(Explosion Release: Bedrock Projectiles)"

The blonde blinked when he heard Deidara. His eyes widened as several human sized chunks of earth flew towards him at blazing speeds.

_'Explosion Release?'_ Naruto thought reflexively, his eyes further widening in realization as the human sized rocks neared him.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Meanwhile, Tsunade was just sitting, watching all the battles, her heart constricting with despair. The shadow clone Naruto had left with her, she had assured it that she would be alright and that the original Naruto needed all the chakra he could get- hence he had dispelled itself.

Now here she was, sitting, trembling like a kid while Naruto and others were desperately trying to defend themselves.

Currently she was watching Naruto intently, extremely worried for him. She knew Jiraiya in his sage mode and Shizune would be able to take care of themselves but Naruto, he was fighting an S-rank missing nin one on one. And Tayuya and Hinata looked nervous too there, currently facing that puppet user.

Her eyes though widened when she saw that blonde Akatsuki throw large rock pieces at him.

_'Damn it Tsunade, get a grip of yourself! I have to do something!'_ she thought, clutching the shodaime's necklace tightly, her hands and pupils still trembling.

Putting her shivering hands down on the ground, she tried to stand up when...

BHOOM!

She snapped her head upon hearing an explosion, her eyebrows lifting when she saw smoke arising from where Naruto was previously standing.

"N-Naruto!" she exclaimed, gritting her teeth as the medic sanin somehow found the strength to lift herself up, now standing on her wobbly knees while her green jacket fell off her shoulders.

_'I have to help him...I can't lose him again! Kushina-chan would never forgive me, I promised her...'_ she thought, now standing on her wobbly knees as she tried to walk.

"N-Naruto...h-hold on...," she stuttered, having taken a few steps when her shaky knees suddenly gave out.

Thud!

Her one eye was closed, pain coursing through her body due to her not being able to completely heal her wound after Shizune had left.

_'Dammit...please...please...just this once...'_ she thought, her eyes getting getting glossy as the smoke had just cleared to reveal a large crater, no signs of him. Her heart was beating like crazy, she had never felt so helpless in her life.

She was a sanin! But just...just because of her stupid fear of blood, she was practically useless right now. She hated it! Tsunade hated being useless, her godson's life was on the line and she just wasn't able to do anything!

CRACK!

Her eyes widened a bit when she heard a crack several feet in front of her before a head burst out of it, her eyebrows lifting in pleasant surprise...

"Dammit! They didn't tell me this guy could use this explosion release."

"Naruto!" she exclaimed in relief as the blonde jumped out of the ground. Turning his head, a look of surprise took birth on his face upon seeing his godmother laying there like that, her eyes glossy.

"Kaa-chan!" he spoke, rushing to her side as he made her sit, frowning at her condition.

"N-Naru-chan...I'm sorry...I j-just can't...," Tsunade spoke in a quivering voice, a desperate expression on her face while Naruto's lips curled down at this. He hated seeing her like this.

"Don't worry Kaa-chan, nobody's going to get hurt. You just rest here," he spoke softly, creating a shadow clone with a half ram seal.

"Pretty evasive aren't you kid hmm?" he snapped his head back, staring into the sky to notice Deidara standing on a large floating clay bird, a smirk on the Iwa nin's face. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he hugged Tsunade's trembling form.

_'He's a long range fighter, and while using lightning fist I wouldn't be able to perform any type of ninjutsu. Damn, taijutsu is just not possible when he keeps throwing explosive things on me from such distance. My only option is ninjutsu here. But I don't know much defensive jutsus, most of them are attacking in nature,'_ he thought when he noticed small clay spiders falling towards them making him curse.

_'He's using Kaa-chan to get me,'_ he thought with a frown, mentally ordering the clone who quickly walked around to stand in front of them. Taking out a shuriken, he covered it with a layer of lightning natured chakra before jerking his arm rapidly, hurling the shuriken towards the spiders at blundering speeds.

_'What's he gonna do with a shuriken?'_ Deidara thought with an amused look on his face when the clones went through a few hand seals, putting quite the amount of chakra in it.

"**Raiton: Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! **(Lightning Release: Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique)"

Deidara's eyes widened when about hundreds of shuriken phased into existence as they neared the spiders. Due to such overwhelming numbers, all the spiders were hit by the lightning shuriken, getting cut in half as they were immediately short circuited.

Naruto frowned when the clay bird was able to dodge those shuriken, displaying impressive speed. Tsunade however was surprised too. During the week, all Naruto had done was spar with Jiraiya, so she didn't know of his talent in ninjutsu at all.

"So, you have some talent in ninjutsu huh?" Deidara verbalized, standing on the bird making the blonde sigh. Though his eyes widened upon noticing some small clay centipedes coming out from the ground, the clone being unaware of it as it glared at Deidara.

_'Shit!'_ he thought as he completely hugged Tsunade protectively, his back facing the spiders.

"**Katsu!**" Deidara exclaimed as the centipedes exploded, instantly dispelling the clone. Naruto, still clutching Tsunade to himself tightly was propelled back at blistering speeds.

He rotated himself in mid air so that Tsunade was on top of him, both of them skidding on the ground while Naruto grit his teeth in excruciating pain, now skidding to a halt.

"N-Naru-chan, you alright?" the medic asked, a concerned expression on her face as she laid on top of him with the jinchuriki hugging her protectively.

"Y-Yeah..." he muttered painfully, his one eye opened as he offered his godmother a weak smile. Both of them stayed on the ground as she continued to tremble, turning her head to notice Deidara smirking at them in amusement.

"You really weren't kidding about protecting your precious people huh? I thought you would leave her to die or something," he spoke from above as Naruto shifted sideways, slowly sitting up while gritting his teeth in pain.

_'Damn it...my back...'_

_"Naruto-kun, you alright? Don't worry, I'll heal you right away!'_ Ayumi spoke frantically while Tsunade was now facing him as cupped his cheek in concern when her eyes widened as she remembered the explosion, knowing that his back was facing it.

Immediately scurrying around him, much to Naruto's hesitancy, her breathing hitched in horror upon noticing his bloody back.

_'Oh no...'_ her right hand now covering her mouth as she gazed at the injury. His trenchcoat, jounin vest as well as the dark blue sweat shirt were completely torn while his skin was sporting several cuts with severe deep-second degree burns while blood was dripping down his back. Her phobia for blood made it even worse as she started to tremble even more while Naruto cursed inwardly. He could feel the injury being healed at extremely fast rates, but he didn't want to show her and make her blame herself even more.

Tears started to stream down Tsunade's face as she realized that this was all happening because of her. First taking such a devastating blast then followed by him skidding on the rough ground on his already injured back, she knew this was a serious injury.

Shifting his eyes, she noticed that he was also panting and sweating a bit.

_'He can't fight them, he's not read to. They'll crush him,'_ Tsunade thought, clenching her fists in desperation.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" she snapped her head upon hearing him as four shadow clones poofed into existence around them.

Her expression morphed into a confused one when the clones started to draw something around her in a circle, their index fingers covered in white chakra, surprising her greatly.

_'Fuinjutsu?'_

"Stay here Kaa-chan, don't worry, I wouldn't let anything happen to anyone of us," Naruto said as he stood up, smiling at her.

"But what about-"

POOF!

"...you?" she finished as he vanished in a shunshin, the clones still drawing an intricate pattern of seals around her.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Kuso! My genjutsu isn't having effect on this fucker! What's going on here?" Tayuya cursed, currently standing in front of Hinata.

"I've been standing here for fifty seven seconds and all you've done is played that flute of yours. Are you even a kunoichi?" Sasori uttered making the red head grit her teeth in anger.

"Tayuya, it seems he has no chakra network at all. J-Just a small chakra core at the center of his body. Everywhere else, chakra strings are present," Hinata spoke, her Toyotama Byakugan activated while a vein popped on Tayuya's head.

"THEN WHY THE FUCK DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THIS BEFORE?" she yelled after turning back making the Hyuga heiress lower her head.

"Gomen, I just noticed now. Earlier I was..." she trailed when the former Oto kunoichi turned back, waving her hand.

"Yeah yeah, you were too scared to do anything before," she muttered before grumbling about 'having made a fool of myself'.

"Now its my turn you pests. I've waited long enough," Sasori spoke making Tayuya narrow her eyes.

_'He keeps saying he hates waiting and now he says he's waited long enough? What was he waiting for anyway?'_ she thought, her lips curling down.

_'My fighting style is just useless against him in this fight. Genjutsu just wouldn't affect him...the only thing I can do is dodge,'_ she thought with a sigh while Hinata, still was too terrified to do anything, being intimidated by the bloodthirsty look in Sasori's eyes.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"You know kid, I'm pretty surprised that you have been able to last even this long against me," Deidara verbalized, gazing at Naruto who was now standing several meters away from Tsunade.

"Whoever trained you must be good. You do seem to have the experience and instincts of fighting against an S-rank ninja, any other kid of your age should've been dead, even if they were as strong as you. So tell me, who gave you this...experience to _survive_?" Deidara asked in curiosity when Naruto instantly thought of his mother.

_'Kaa-san...'_ he thought as a small smile tugged his lips, remembering what she had said the first day of his survival training with her after punching him in the gut as he writhed in pain, just after she had jumped to this timeline-

_"This...is what an S-rank shinobi is Naruto, this is how much strong your so called old hokage is, this is how much strong each member of Akatsuki would be...and some of them maybe stronger even than me. Get up Naruto...because your enemies wouldn't wait for Ayumi to heal you."_

_'Well, here they are actually taking their time, really odd for these two,'_ the blonde thought as he chose to ignore Deidara's question, keeping quiet as he glared at the Iwa's missing nin.

"You know, it's odd that you haven't gone offensive yet against me. Being a jinchuriki, you're supposed to be violent and wild ne? Or is it that you're too scared to make a move hmm?" Deidara asked with his patented smirk.

"Taunting me won't get you anywhere," the whiskered blonde spoke making the clay user sigh.

"Guess...I'll do more exploding then?" he exclaimed with a crazy grin, releasing several clays of deformed shapes making the blonde crouch a bit on guard as he took out a shuriken.

His eyes however widened when those deformed clay shapes started to increase in size in mid air.

Thud! Thud! Thud!...Thud!

Several of them landed on the ground, now human sized as Naruto put back the shuriken, narrowing his eyes.

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"** he exclaimed as several shadow clones formed beside him. All of them opened their arms a bit wide as lightning started to crackle around their clenched fists. Upon Naruto's mental command, the clones dashed towards the approaching human-like creatures at impressive speeds while Deidara's eyes widened as he noticed something.

_'These shadow clones are moving faster than the original one. Was he holding back on me? Or maybe that lightning around his fists increases his speed...but that's just not possible. No...wait...'_ he thought, parting the bangs in front of his left eye to reveal his eyescope as he zoomed in on the shadow clones.

_'Yup, he's using a small amount of lightning natured chakra beneath his feet...'_

Reaching the clay creatures, they punched them in the middle at blurry speeds, piercing the clay while the original Naruto stood at some distance, an impassive look on his face.

Electric sparks coursed through the clay creatures as they fell to the ground.

KRKHH!

"Surprise!" the original Naruto's eyes widened when two hands gripped his legs as another Deidara's head popped out from the earth. Naruto snapped his head back to see Deidara standing on the bird with a smirk on his face.

_'A clone? When did he have the chance to create it?'_ he pondered before his eyes widened in realization.

_'It must've been back then, when he threw those explosive earth boulders on me. I was distracted at that moment, and he must have made a clay clone before taking off with his bird. So this clone was hiding in the ground all along?'_

"Aww, that was easy hmm. Well, we need to keep you alive, though its not like you'll be dead with your legs chopped off huh?" Deidara, who was standing on the bird uttered with a cold smirk as he formed the half ram seal.

"**Katsu!**"

Boom!

Surprisingly, this resulted in a smaller explosion, indicating Deidara only intended to blast off his legs.

_'Naruto!'_ both Tsunade and Hinata thought in worry, glancing at the explosion.

Deidara scrunched his eyes a bit as he tried to pierce the dust screen that had settled upon the area of impact. He sighed when he noticed that the blonde's shadow clones were still standing.

_'So it was another clone huh?'_ he thought, turning his eyes to the clones.

Poof! Poof!...Poof!

They all dispelled themselves while only one Naruto stood, his hands encased in sparks of lightning which slowly died down, the whiskered blonde wanting to conserve his chakra.

"Oh, so you mixed yourselves with your clones huh? Not bad kyuubi jinchuriki," Deidara verbalized with a smirk while Naruto's eyes widened when he noticed something off about the bird.

_'It's tail...where is its tail? I can swear I sa-'_

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted when something white wrapped around his upper body tightly, also locking his arms. The blonde snapped his head, his pupils zooming out when he noticed the said tail wrapped around him.

"I'm an S-rank criminal kid, don't think you can get away with naive tricks hmm," Deidara articulated with a dark smile as Naruto struggled to get out of the iron grip the tail seemed to have.

"No use brat, the more you struggle the more it will tighten," the blonde Iwa's missing nin said as he formed his patented half ram seal while Naruto started to panic, his eyes widening.

_"Naruto! Give me control quickly!"_ Ayumi yelled from his mindscape as he closed his eyes, waiting for the impending blast, knowing that he didn't have any time.

_'No!'_ Tsunade thought in horror, now sitting in a barrier created by Naruto's clones.

"**Katsu!**"

Whoom!

A small explosion took place while Deidara snorted to himself, dust covering the area where Naruto was standing with chunks of earth flying in all directions.

"Man that was easy. Oi!" he called in the direction of Sasori, noticing his partner standing in front of a gravely injured red head who was barely standing on her feet while a Hyuga was sitting there terrified.

"What is it?" Sasori spoke in irritation.

"I think we're done here, the jinchuriki is down!" he yelled when the puppet user looked to his right, where Jiraiya was standing along with Orochimaru and Kabuto while Hinata seemed to stiffen at that.

"Are you blind Deidara?" Suna's missing nin spoke making the said blonde look where Sasori was staring for his eyes to get widen in surprise.

_'What the...'_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"Phew, that was a close call now huh?" Jiraiya spoke currently standing with Fukasaku on his shoulders, Shima standing behind behind him as she stared at the terrified blonde in front of her.

"I'm...w-what happened?" Naruto asked, sitting on the ground unharmed as he tried to calm himself. His heart was beating rapidly, beads of sweat pouring down the side of his face in anxiety.

_'Thank Kami you're alright...I almost had a heart attack there!" _Ayumi exclaimed with a huff while the whiskered blonde took deep breaths as he slowly stood up.

"I told you toad summons would come in handy one day, didn't I?" Jiraiya said with a smirk, glancing at his godson from the corner of his eyes.

Tsunade however, sitting away from them in a barrier released a shaky breath, wiping her eyes.

_'Thank Kami...Naru-chan...'_ she hadn't hated herself this much for being helpless her entire life now.

"W-What happened? How did I get here?" he asked, narrowing his eyes upon noticing a panting Orochimaru and a mildly injured Kabuto staring at them.

"I reverse summoned ya of course," Shima replied making his eyes widen.

"Reverse...summoned?" he asked in confusion.

"I'll explain later," the toad sanin muttered, now staring at the duo in front of him.

"With this transformation giving you so much power, I'm surprised you haven't been able to defeat these two," Naruto verbalized in confusion making Jiraiya sigh in irritation.

"I've already killed Orochimaru three times but he just keeps popping out of his own mouth while Kabuto just uses him as a shield. It seems my teammate here is using his chakra solely for the process of regeneration," he muttered making Naruto remember his fight with the snake sanin in the forest of death a month ago, where he had regenerated the same way after being poisoned by his Demonic Fox Claw taijutsu.

"Well well...looks like these frogs saved you hmm?" Deidara spoke from above with a smirk, currently standing on his bird hovering above them.

Naruto turned his head to glare at the Akatsuki nin before turning back to Orochimaru, his eyes narrowing when he realized something. He had made a promise to someone after all. Walking forward, he calmly asked...

"Orochimaru, where is Sasuke?" this made Jiraiya frown while the snake sanin, who was glaring at Naruto was surprised at the question.

"Oh? Now what would you want with Sasuke-kun?" he asked with a smirk making the blonde grit his teeth.

"It doesn't concern you! .Sasuke?" he asked heatedly when Jiraiya put a hand on Naruto's shoulder whereas Shima was keeping an eye on Deidara for any sneak attack, her sage mode activated.

_'Hm...they must be wanting him due to Uchiha Mikoto, Sasuke's mother being recently revived by Kushina,'_ Orochimaru mused as he stayed quiet, not saying anything.

"Naruto, leave it," Jiraiya said making the blonde clench his fists in anger.

"Why haven't you used the Rinnegan yet?" this made Naruto stiffen. The blonde started to walk back, staring at Deidara when Jiraiya grabbed the back of his cloak collar roughly, which had a large hole in the middle due to his earlier injury, now completely healed.

"I asked you a question gaki," he spoke seriously making the blonde sigh.

"I...well..."

"**Senpou** **Fuuton: Daitoppa! **(Sage Art Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)" Naruto shifted his eyes while Jiraiya glanced at Shima who had just blew a destructive wave of wind from her mouth.

Dozens of clay spiders, which were approaching the group from high above in the sky were blown away in the opposite direction while the bird, on which Deidara was standing had trouble maintaining its balance.

_'What crazy power? How can a summon hold such power? I'm fighting at a long rage and still her wind jutsu was this strong at such distance,'_ Deidara thought in awe, using chakra beneath his feet to stick to the bird as it struggled under the force of the wind attack.

Naruto's pupils were already zoomed out in shock as he stared at the effects of the jutsu. Did this little toad...just fire that wind technique?

"I don't have time to hear your reasons for this idiocity, but just look where Tayuya and Hinata are fighting Sasori of the Red Sand," Jiraiya verbalized seriously making the jinchuriki's eyes widen, he had completely forgotten about them. Turning his head quickly, his breathing hitched when he noticed Tayuya's condition.

The red head had several senbon stabbing her body, blood was leaking down her chin indicating she had suffered a critical injury. She seemed to be panting heavily, sitting on her knees as she held her rib region, a look of pain on her face while she was staring at the puppet user with half lidded eyes.

Hinata however seemed to be trembling, a look of terror on her face as she was bent down to the former Oto's kunoichi level.

_'Tayuya!'_ he exclaimed with wide eyes, anger starting to flood his system as he clenched his fists.

"They are putting their life on the line just for you gaki while you stand here, still debating if you should use your strength to its fullest or not. Kushina would be disappointed in you Naruto," Jiraiya uttered in a solemn tone making the blonde stiffen at that.

_"I wouldn't ever disappoint you Kaa-san! I will make you proud!"_

"I know that you're going through a tough phase Naruto, but you you are getting selfish here. Because of your own insecurities, you're letting your precious people suffer," he continued as the whiskered blonde stood there frozen while Fukasaku and Shima were on full alert for any attacks, using sage mode to keep check of their surroundings.

"You got all depressed up after what happened with Itachi, but what about others, what about Hinata, Tsunade and Shizune? What if something happens to them? If you keep this up Naruto, your life is going to revolve around regret, hate and revenge. Eventually you'll be captured by Akatsuki and that is ultimately going to lead to Konoha's destruction. Think what you're doing now kid. I know you're not this weak hearted Naruto, or maybe that Itachi hurt you really bad. Maybe its because you never experienced the pain of forming bonds before those bonds being broken?" Jiraiya muttered, staring at his ex-teammate with somewhat soft eyes, who strangely hadn't gone in for an attack. However, not even Deidara was attacking as he stood on his bird, content on giving them their time.

Jiraiya's eyes began to get cold as he glared at Orochimaru.

"But snap out of it Naruto! This week, all I have observed is a burdened boy with dull eyes, faking his happiness just for the sake of others. The real Naruto is in there somewhere and I want him back, not some depressed scaredy cat crying over his fate!" the sanin exclaimed loudly with gritted teeth, somewhat surprising Orochimaru and Deidara while Naruto's head was currently lowered, his bangs shadowing his eyes as he stood frozen there, his fists tightly clenched at his sides.

_"Hey Naruto."_

_"Y-Yeah"_

_"Are you alright, scaredy cat?"_

A vision of Sasuke mocking him during the wave mission and how he had taken an oath on his blood flashed through his mind.

_"It's in your fate to be weak and soft hearted. So just quit and save me some time"_

Images of Neji mocking Hinata flashed through his mind.

"Ero-sennin..." Naruto choked while Ayumi stayed silent in his mind.

"I'm...confused. I...just don't know," he spoke in a low tone making Jiraiya smirk.

"You idiot, its just so simple. Have you forgotten your nindo?" he said making Naruto lift his head in surprise.

"What do you fight for? Why did you train so hard before?"

_'Nindo?' _the word felt so foreign for him, he had completely forgotten about it. His ninja way? Something he yelled about never giving up?

"What awakened your Rinnegan? What gave you the second level of Rinnegan? What pushed you so hard during the invasions?" the toad sage asked with a serious expression, the blonde's eyes widening as he remembered all the major events in his life since he had entered Forest of Death a month ago.

Itachi killing his precious people awakened his doujutsu.

_"Don't c-cry N-Naru-kun…..I-I'm ha-happy….I-I'm dying…'cough' while p-protecting you."_

It took Anko to be stabbed in the gut by Sasuke's katana for him to awaken the second level of Rinnegan. Even with all of his reserves exhausted, he had still somehow pushed himself beyond his limits to save a dying Hiruzen.

_"When you have someone precious you want to protect, only then will you get strong."_

_'Haku...'_ the blonde jinchuriki thought as his eyes widened in realization before they returned to their normal size, his lips tugging upwards as he released a shaky breath.

_"Don't worry, you'll get strong...very strong."_

"Arigatou...Jiraiya-sensei," he muttered making the toad sage glance at him in surprise when the blonde glanced towards his left, where Shizune and Guren were fighting.

Both Shizune and Guren seemed to be panting, the crystal user having already been low on chakra after almost going all out on Tsunade. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he began to build up some chakra.

"Shima-sama, would you mind assisting Naruto here in his fight? Fukasaku-sama can keep me long enough in sage mode," Jiraiya verbalized making her nod as she jumped to land on Naruto's shoulder making the blonde glance at her.

"See ya Pa! Lets go Naruto-chan!" Shima exclaimed making him nod with a serious expression, though he looked a bit uncomfortable with a toad on his shoulder.

"You know, you should worry for that red haired friend of yours. Sasori-sama is stronger than me after all," Deidara said with a smirk, still not having launched an attack making Naruto glance at him in surprise.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"I suggest you two run away while you can. Though the redhead one is going to die anyway. She's been lethally affected by my poison and will last at a maximum of a day now," Sasori uttered, currently standing without his Akatsuki cloak, his puppet Hiruku on full display.

"T-Tayuya...please don't push yourself like this," Hinata said shakily, her quivering hands on the red head's shoulder who was panting rather heavily, her breathing ragged. It seemed one of Sasori's poisoned senbon had damaged one or both of her lungs.

"I'm a-alright...just s-stay the fuck beh-behind me," Tayuya breathed out, but it was no use she knew that. Her world was spinning while her whole body was going numb now due to the poison.

_'I...I have to do something. I can't Tayuya die, she has risked her life for us!'_ the Hyuga heiress thought frantically as she turned her head, her eyes widening upon looking into the eyes of the scorpion, exuding crazy amounts of killer intent.

"Now lets see what your Byakugan can do little Hyuga," Sasori verbalized roughly, narrowing his eyes while Hinata's body was currently gripped in fear.

_'I-Its really no use. I wouldn't last ten seconds against an S-rank shinobi like him. He doesn't even have any sort of chakra network. All I see are several chakra strings attached to a core, my gentle fist wouldn't be any match for him. We have to retreat!'_ she thought when Tayuya began to fall back.

"Tayuya!" Hinata exclaimed in worry as she caught Tayuya's falling form in her arms. The red head was breathing heavily, sweat pouring down her skin as Hinata wiped the blood off her forehead.

"Fine then...if you wouldn't do anything, I will!" Sasori exclaimed as he opened his mouth, firing a barrage of poisoned needles again at her.

Hinata sat there, too terrified to do anything while the extremely fast senbon approached them as she closed her eyes shut, waiting for the impact.

Squelch! Squelch!...Squelch!

"Naruto-chan!"

...

"Oh?"

Upon hearing Sasori's surprised grunt, Hinata opened her eyes to notice Naruto standing in front of her, a small toad on his left shoulder.

"N-Naruto-kun?" she voiced in a low tone, her eyes widening in horror. The blonde slowly slid to one knee as he turned his head slightly, a thin line of blood streaming down his chin.

"You o-okay Hinata-chan?" he asked, his one eye closed as she stared at him wide eyed.

"I'm okay, but, why did you do that?" she asked barely above a whisper in a bit of desperation. Putting Tayuya's head gently on the ground, she quickly rushed to his side, her heart constricting upon noticing the whole of his upper body stabbed with senbon.

"O-Oh Kami..." she muttered, putting a hand on her mouth as tears gathered in her eyes.

"I told ya to wait and let me fire a wind jutsu!" Shima exclaimed making the blonde shake his head.

"We didn't have much time...the attack was extremely fast, besides we were...out of r-range," he spoke while stuttering whereas tears were freely leaking Hinata's face as she glanced at Tayuya before turning to him.

_'It's all my fault...they are fighting like true shinobi, without any fear while I'm...just too scared to lift even a single finger,'_ she inwardly thought as her hands began to tremble.

"Do you have a death wish kyuubi jinchuriki? You have been hit twice by my poison now," Sasori commented, somewhat impressed that the blonde had taken the barrage of senbon on himself.

"Nah, that's just what he calls protecting his precious people. And whoa...that's quite the pin cushion we've got hmm?" Deidara spoke from above casually, sitting on his clay bird cross-legged with a smirk on his face. Hinata stiffened as she heard him. The phrase 'protecting his precious people' ringing in her ears.

"Gama b-baa-chan, can you hop off my sh-shoulder for a bit," Naruto uttered, his eyes half lidded as he could feel the poison acting. Shima was about to object when she noticed his eyes, despite in so much pain, they were full of determination, icy cold as he stared at Sasori. Holding her tongue, she jumped off his shoulder to land beside Hinata.

_"Ayumi-chan, can you lend me some chakra?"_ he asked before getting an immediate reply.

_"Of course Naruto-kun!" _she exclaimed, wanting to help her lover in any way she could. A small smile tugged the blonde's lips as he closed his eyes.

_'This feeling...'_ Sasori and Deidara were immediately on alert while Shima had her eyes widened in shock.

_'He's deliberately using kyuubi's chakra?'_

Hinata too had her eyes widened as she watched his features getting feral, a look of deep concentration on his face.

"You've got to throw more than j-just some senbon and bombs you bastards!" he exclaimed with a smirk, his hair getting spikier, whiskers getting deepened while his eyes turned red with a black slit in them.

Hinata though was shocked, she hadn't seen that look on his face since the invasion. Suddenly brief flashback of him loudly proclaiming his dream in the academy entered her mind.

_"Yeah laugh all you want! Someday I'm gonna be the Hokage!"_

That stubborn determination...

_"No way I never go back on my word, that's my way of the ninja!"_

That will to never give up...

_"Even if I can't change the views of the villagers who have witnessed what happened twelve years ago, but I can definitely shape the views of younger generation towards me and I'll do it!"_

That positive look in his eyes...

_"I no longer sought to become the Hokage just because of acknowledgement Hinata-chan, its because I want to protect this village, the upcoming generation. I know I have the power to do it!"_

That attitude...even in this situation, it all was coming back.

She lowered her head as wind began to rustle their hair due to Ayumi's youki when the stabbed senbon were pushed out from his body with a jerk as they flew in random directions making Sasori's eyes widen a bit.

_'I've always watched you from afar, as you loudly and so confidently stated your dream, wanting to walk with you, stand with you,'_ Hinata thought, her eyes shadowed as she wiped her tears.

_'Then I started to stand beside you, watching you mature. I first promised myself to walk in your footsteps, but that slowly changed as I wanted to walk with you. There were many times you fell, and several times I wasn't there to pick you up, but you were always there for me. Even in your weak moments, you always had a smile for me. I... I then started to walk with you, impressing you and everyone else with my skills, my developments. I finally had a dream- I want to remove the cage bird seal and be with you for the rest of my life,'_ she pondered as all the cuts of Naruto's body were now healed.

"That demonic chakra wouldn't be able to destroy my poison if that's what you're thinking," Sasori uttered while Shima stared at Naruto in curiosity, still on alert in her sage mode for any possible sneak attacks.

_"Ayumi-chan, block all of your chakra now,"_ Naruto inwardly spoke making the bijuu nod as she stopped the leaking of her chakra from the seal.

_'But now...its just like before. Here you are, again protecting me, following your nindo when you're the one who's in most danger here. Everytime I catch upto you to stand with you, to walk with you, I somehow get left behind as you walk past me. It just keeps happening, I keep chasing you,'_ the Hyuga heiress thought, clenching her fists while Naruto had his eyes closed in concentration- already knowing that Shima would take care of any attacks.

_'To counter the poison, I have to increase the flow of chakra in my coils,'_ he thought with a serious expression, trusting the healing properties of his chakra while he could feel his body going numb due to the poison.

THUP!

Slamming his palms into one another, Naruto began to build up his chakra, tapping into his Uzumaki level reserves as his chakra levels began to sky rocket.

_'What's he doing?'_ Shima thought while Sasori narrowed his eyes as he noticed the white glowing layer of chakra which was currently surrounding Naruto.

"**Kugutsu no Jutsu: Gishu Senbon** (Puppet Technique: Prosthetic Arm Needles)" Sasori muttered as he fired his torpedo-shaped left arm towards Naruto. Shima's eyes widened upon sensing the attack as she snapped her head, her eyes widening as the speed was much higher than his previous attack. She started to go through some handseals as the torpedo arm, which was currently rotating at blurry speeds launched the wooden cylinders attached to it. The cylinders immediately opened, further firing a rapid rain of poisoned senbon, increasing its speed in the process as they were nothing but a blur, even to Shima's eyes.

_'Kuso! I wouldn't be able to make it in time!'_ the mother of toads thought as she continued to do handseals while the blurred senbon approached them.

Naruto, opening his icy cerulean blue eyes, lifted his right arm.

"**Shinr-"** he abruptly stopped when Hinata appeared in front of him, his eyes widening in surprise upon noticing her body glowing a blue in color, intensifying by the second.

_'No more! From now on, I'll walk with you, tightly holding your hand. I will not let you get past me and bear your burdens alone!'_ Hinata thought with a serious expression as she started to rotate, dispelling chakra from her body all the while.

"**Kaiten Mitama! **(Megami's Spirit in Revolving Heaven)" he heard her yell as instantly, a large rotating dome of blue chakra formed around them, covering Naruto, Shima as well as Tayuya in its radius.

Sasori's eyes widened in shock not when all the needles were deflected easily, but by the fact as to how large the dome was and that he could spot a rough white glowing figure in the center of the dome.

BOOM!

He shifted his eyes upwards upon noticing something explode on top of the dome.

_'So she also was able to see Deidara's sneak attack coming?'_ he thought in surprise as the chakra dome slowly died down to reveal the group completely unharmed.

_'H-How did she saw my clay spiders so early? I swear I'd got them. Even with the Byakugan she shouldn't have been able to see them coming at such a large distance and then jmhave the time to react. Was it just a fluke?'_ Deidara thought in shock, now standing on the clay bird with a frown on his face.

Naruto and Shima however had expressions of disbelief on their faces.

"H-Hinata..." the blonde trailed as he stood there, watching her back as her shoulder length hair rustled with the wind- his chakra levels still raised to counter the poison.

_'I've heard of the technique 'Kaiten' of the Hyuga clan, but this technique...is this an upgraded version?'_ Shima thought in surprise.

_'Kaiten doesn't produce such amount of chakra and it is only meant to protect the user, not the others along with the user itself. This new Kaiten...it has to be the result of her Toyotama Byakugan for sure,'_ he thought in awe when the said Hyuga heiress turned her head slightly, glancing at the blonde from the corner of her eyes- her Toyotama Byakugan activated.

"Sorry to jump in like that Naruto-kun, but had I not...we would have been hit by the bombs from that clay user above us," she spoke, shocking him greatly while Shima had a serious expression on her face.

_'It seems her range of vision has increased since last time. For her to react in time in accordance to Deidara's bombs, she must have had seen them coming from just when he released them, and that's quite the distance,'_ he pondered with a serious expression before answering her.

"No...its thanks to you that we're alive Hinata-chan," this made her smile a bit as she nodded, her eyes focused on the puppet user in front of her.

He then lifted his head to gaze at Deidara with narrowed eyes.

"Gama baa-chan, can you help Hinata-chan here? I'll be fine by myself," he spoke, still staring upwards making her nod.

"Leave it ta me," she assured as he lowered his head. Forming a shadow clone, he tilted his head towards Tayuya making the clone nod.

"Take care Hinata-chan. Just keep defending, this will soon be over," the whiskered blonde muttered before vanishing into a burst of electric sparks to appear several meters away from them.

Deidara lifted an eyebrow as he noticed Naruto staring at him while his clay bird flew towards the waiting blonde.

Naruto sighed to himself as he clenched his fists.

_'Sorry Ero-senin, but sometimes attack is the best defense. Now to get rid of that annoying bird. There has to be a limited amount of clay that guy can use,'_ Naruto thought with a serious expression as he started to go through a set of familiar hand seals, pouring lightning natured chakra in his right hand before slamming it on the ground.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**"

POOF!

The smoke cleared to show a red skinned dragon, pale brown scales on its frontal body with a large battle scar on it, two large wings which were larger as compared to his smaller body, eyes dark green with one claw on each limb. Another noticeable characteristic was the insignia of yellow bolts on each of its wings.

"Naruto-sama...," the dragon bowed, its voice being of typical rough nature.

"Feilong, I need your help here. I don't have time to explain much," the jinchuriki muttered as he began to tell the dragon of the basics regarding Deidara's abilities.

_'That dragon...I've never heard of a dragon summoning contract before,'_ Deidara thought, using his eye scope as he took out several clay fireflies from his pouch.

_'Idiots...they gave me enough time to prepare. Lets see if you see these minute fireflies coming kid,'_ he thought with a smirk when Naruto created several shadow clones making him curious as to what the blonde was planning.

_'His battle tactics seem to have taken a complete one-eighty turn,' _the ex-terrorist bomber mused, curious as to what had brought the sudden change.

"Alright guys, you know what to do," Naruto spoke as he climbed onto Feilong's back while they nodded.

"Here we go," the blonde muttered as the lightning dragon took off with impressive speeds, its large wings giving them more speed as Naruto approached Deidara into the sky.

_'Well this is getting interesting,'_ Deidara thought as the bird opened its mouth, shooting off several clay shuriken making the blonde narrow his eyes, currently grabbing onto the dragons shoulder with his knees set on its back using chakra while his trenchcoat was flapping wildly due to their speed.

"Shoot Feilong!" he exclaimed as the lightning dragon opened his mouth in its flight. Lightning started to gather in his mouth in the form of a purple ball, electric sparks shooting off in random directions before he fired it towards the oncoming shuriken.

The lightning ball sailed towards the shuriken at blistering speeds. Just when the lightning ball reached the shuriken, Feilong's eyes glowed purple when...

CRRRKKHH!

The ball exploded into uncountable sparks of electricity as all the clay shuriken were hit several times, rendering them useless.

The duo continued to dash towards Deidara while Naruto started to go through some handseals, wind ruffling his hair wildly. Feilong again opened its mouth, this time firing the same attack towards the bird on which Deidara was standing.

The blonde Akatsuki nin smirked as the bird easily dodged the attack by flying sideways, getting out of its range as Naruto along with Feilong neared them.

_'Yeah, come on kid...'_ Deidara thought with a smirk, the fireflies clenched in his hands while the bird stayed in its position.

_'Now!' _Naruto thought as he jumped off from Feilong in midair. Having used a chakra enhanced jump, he sailed higher into the sky leaving Deidara below before descending on them.

_'He really does charges head on...'_ Deidara thought with a smirk as the approaching blonde reared his right fist while the clay bird again shot several clay shuriken towards an approaching Feilong.

"Take...this!" Naruto exclaimed as he brought his fist towards Deidara's face...

Whoosh!

_'Too slow...'_ the blonde Iwa nin thought, all the while smirking as he dodged Naruto's punch. Forced to go with his momentum, the blonde continued to descend as he passed the bird when Feilong flew to below him as he again landed on the lightning dragon's back.

Deidara smirked as he stared at the fireflies crawling on Naruto's trenchcoat.

_'Art is a'_

"Blast!"

Boom!

"Argh!" Naruto exclaimed in pain as he was sent flying towards the ground, having lost his balance on Feilong while smoke was arising from his back.

_'This should teach that cocky brat a lesson,'_ Deidara thought when his eyes widened upon noticing Naruto's body fade into nothing, along with Feilong.

_'What the...genjutsu?'_ he pondered, his eyes widening in realization as he quickly formed the ram seal.

"Kai!"

His eyes widened in slow motion when the next thing he saw was Naruto, several inches away as the blonde flew towards him with a white glowing ball of spiraling chakra in his right hand.

_'Too late!'_ Naruto exclaimed inwardly, his narrowed eyes blazing with Rinnegan as he brought the glowing sphere towards where Deidara's heart was.

"**RASENGAN!**" the blonde yelled as he slammed the attack into Deidara's flesh, gritting his teeth as the ball of chakra rotated into the flesh.

"Nrghh!" the blonde Iwa nin exclaimed in pain when...

Boom!

The Rasengan exploded a bit sending him spiraling down from the bird, on a crashing course towards the ground.

Naruto landed on Feilong's back while the bird too started to descend towards the ground, having been electrocuted by Feilong's attack.

Deidara's one eye was closed as he sailed towards the ground, his shoulder bleeding after having deflected the attack at the last second.

He then released a small clay bird from his hand as it enlarged quickly, catching him in midair before he could crash into the ground.

Naruto landed on the ground along with Feilong, staring into Deidara's eyes with his Rinnegan, the latter of whom was crouched on the bird, holding his right bleeding shoulder as he glared at the whiskered blonde.

_'Damn it! Kisame told me this jinchuriki's genjutsu was non-existent,'_ Deidara thought with gritted teeth as he lifted his left hand to remove the eye scope from his left eye.

"Why you...fine brat! I was going easy on you but no more games!" Deidara exclaimed as he stood up, an angry expression on his face while Naruto stared at him with his somewhat glowing Rinnegan, his eyes icy cold.

"Bring it on."

**Wow...this was 8K+ long chapter. Lol **

**Okay, now coming to this issue of FF following its policy on fiction ratings and deleting some fics. I don't know really...but really, this news did disturb me pretty badly. I mean, so many authors have worked so hard, gaining reviews and hits and they're just gonna delete all that in an instant? Now, coming to my fics, for the first time, I'm happy that my lemon content has been down...lol. The first lemon in this fic comes in ch 21 whereas TBD and TJN don't have any lemons at all, so yeah...looking positively, the chances of my main stories being deleted are very slim. Don't know about my one shots though. But that doesn't mean I'll stop writing lemons. ! Now in response to the shit these guys have pulled, I'm gonna pull even more lemons than planned...so when Naruto returns Konoha, prepare yourself! I'm especially going to explore the girls who haven't had much screen time, but the main ones wouldn't be ignored too lol. I still believe that romance can't be complete in a fic without lemons and I'll write lemons as much as I want to. ' . .shit! And I guess most of you are already aware of the petition on , so for those who haven't yet, go and sign it. **

**Now coming to this very low probability scenario of my fics being deleted or me being banned from this site, in that case...**_**'rubbing my head'...'sigh'**_**...really, I don't know what to do. I guess I'll stop writing or something...or just make another account on this site to continue. I don't think I'll post on other sites like AdultFF cause...c'mon, lets face it, has the best response for Naruto fics...or any other stories I guess. So if I post, it has to be this site. Or I can go to dA too, but seriously...that site isn't for stories mainly, only about 10% or so people there I think read fanfics on that site. But really...if my fics get deleted...**_**'sniff'**_**...my precious reviews...**_**'hugs them tightly'**_**. But hey, at least I want to reach 3K mark before anything possibly happens. :)**

**Enough of my ramblings though, lets not get sad and enjoy ourselves...while we can...lol jk. So the usual, review, next chapter's been written, and prepare for some lemons! XD**

**See you guys in the next chapter! It should be up around coming 16th though :D**

**N6023**


	44. The Proud Knucklehead

**Well, I can't express how excited I am after finally crossing the 3K reviews mark, and its all thanks to you readers being less lazy and reviewing, lol! Thank you guys, really...thanks a lot. :)**

**Emo moment- **_**'sniff' **_**I love you all so much! XP lol**

**Now here goes a long chapter, you should like this one. :D**

**Chapter 44-The Proud Knucklehead**

_'Damn it! Kisame told me this jinchuriki's genjutsu was non-existent,'_ Deidara thought with gritted teeth as he lifted his left hand to remove the eye scope from his left eye.

"W-Why you...fine brat! I was going easy on you but no more games!" Deidara exclaimed as he stood up, an angry expression on his face while Naruto stared at him with his somewhat glowing Rinnegan, his eyes icy cold.

"Bring it on you clay-spitting bastard," he spoke with a calm expression on his face as Deidara continued to clutch his shoulder, blood leaking out.

_'Damn it! What was that attack? It hurts like a bitch!'_ he thought before making a half ram seal as a clay clone came out from the clay bird he was currently standing on.

Naruto raised an eyebrow as the clone tore off the sleeve of Deidara's Akatsuki cloak before he started to tightly wrap it around the original one's shoulder.

_'Not so fast,'_ the whiskered blonde thought as he lifted his arm, palm facing Deidara.

"**Shinra Tensei**," he whispered as Deidara along with his clone were immediately thrusted back with a destructive force, being thrown off the flying bird.

KHDDDRR!

_'Damn, this attack was much stronger than his previous ones,'_ Deidara thought with gritted teeth, skidding on the ground with his clone already destroyed due to the force of the technique.

Naruto however was surprised that the Akatsuki nin was able to withstand his attack and not receive any damage whereas Feilong had just dispelled himself upon the blonde's orders.

_'He's really skilled to counter Shinra Tensei like that, especially when I fired it with the Rinnegan activated,'_ the blonde jinchuriki thought while Deidara, again using a clone had now wrapped the newly torn fabric from his cloak to stop the blood flow.

_'Alright, it seems he prepares his clay bombs from those mouths in hands. His usual battle tactics include him standing on that bird, keep dodging the opponent's attacks while he prepares those bombs. He solely concentrates on fighting at long range,'_ Naruto thought when he closed his one eye.

_'Damn this poison! Even with my chakra it's slowly working its way through,'_ he thought, taking a deep breath.

_"Are you alright Naruto-kun? You have to get out of here soon, otherwise with you moving around like this, the poison's just gonna spread quickly"_ he heard Ayumi's concerned voice.

_"I'm fine, and I'm trying Ayumi-chan. But these are S-rank nins we're facing. It won't be easy to deceive them, especially with this clay guy who'll just follow us using his bird. I have to do something about this annoying ability of his,'_ he inwardly spoke, his earlier formed clones standing behind him. Their Rinnegan were activated as they watched other battles taking place.

_"Hey Naruto-kun, I have an idea to make all that clay in his bag useless," _Ayumi spoke in what seemed to be a devious tone making him raise an eyebrow at the mirth in her voice.

_"What is it Ayumi-chan?"_

_'What's he waiting for? He's just standing there with a lost look on his face. Does that brat really think I'm gonna fall for such a lame trick?'_ Deidara thought with a frown as he put his hands inside his bag to get more clay.

_'Fine then...its time I use my lethal C1's here,' _the Akatsuki nin thought, the mouths on his hands doing their work of molding his explosive chakra in the clay.

_"Um...you sure?" _Naruto asked inwardly, a nervous look on his face as Ayumi chuckled deviously making his eyebrows twitch.

_'How can she behave like that when my life is on the line here?'_ he thought in frustration.

_"Oh believe me Naruto-kun, it will definitely work. Please just try it once, for me?" _

Now he could 'feel' her giving him those puppy dog eyes making him sigh.

_"Fine then, I'm trusting you on this Ayumi-chan,"_ he inwardly spoke followed by a grumble of 'I can't believe I'm about to do this'.

The whiskered blonde then adopted a grim expression as he stared back at a smirking Deidara.

_'I have to engage him in taijutsu. But he just wouldn't let me come near him. Even if he's a long range fighter, he's as fast as Kakashi-sensei...or even faster. I need something impulsive here, which can make me cover the distance quickly. If I do lightning shunshin, he'll sense my chakra as to where I'm about to appear just in time to dodge my attack. Kaa-san was easily able to counter it and could tell where I would be appearing,'_ he thought when his eyes widened in what seemed to be realization.

_'That just might work but...I haven't tested it in any battle, not even training. And I only have one shot at this,'_ he thought, now forming two shadow clones beside him.

Taking out a hand-sized square shaped parchment, a minute black seal on it, Naruto put it on the clone's stomach while the previously formed clones continued to keep watch over other battles with their Rinnegan.

He then put his hand on the seal, applying chakra as a larger black circular seal appeared on the clones back. The other clone then put his hand on the clone's back, in the middle of the seal as Naruto nodded at the clone.

_'Alright, the timing has to be perfect. He has to put the chakra in the seal at the same time as me,'_ the blonde thought as he walked a bit forward to create some distance between himself as the clone with seal.

"So, what's taking you so much time to make a move? Planning something?" Deidara asked with a smirk as he opened his fists, a few spiders crawling out of the mouth while Naruto stayed quiet as he glanced at the clay spiders.

_'Here goes nothing,'_ he thought before turning around to dash towards his clone in a blur.

Naruto jumped towards the 'seal' clone in such a way that it looked he was going for a kick at his clone's stomach, where the seal was.

"Ngh!" his clone exclaimed as he skidded back a bit when the blonde's foot connected with his gut.

_'Now!'_ Naruto thought, his body currently horizontal to the ground in slow motion, his feet planted on his clone's stomach while his knees were slowly bent with his motion as the clone stood his ground, being used as a springboard.

The clone standing behind put chakra through the larger seal, activating it as a burst of chakra erupted from it while Naruto released chakra from his feet at the exact same time.

WHOOSH!

Having used the clone as a springboard, his chakra enhanced recoil motion was given a _monstrous_ burst due to the seal releasing large amounts of chakra in an instant. The blonde went sailing towards a surprised Deidara at mind boggling speeds while his two clones were dispelled due to the large reaction force.

_'Damn...too fast,'_ Naruto thought, his Rinnegan eradicating the tunnel vision as he neared Deidara, having sliced through the wind while he had covered a considerable distance in just a second.

_'Shit!'_

Not having the time to even blink an eye, Deidara barely dodged Naruto's fist, his cheek getting grazed as the Akatsuki nin was thrown off balance due to the last moment dodge.

POOF!

_'A clone?'_ Deidara thought in shock, being sure that it was the real Naruto.

He didn't even have time to widen his eyes upon noticing two shadows descending on him. Without even looking up, he formed the half ram seal.

_'__**Katsu!**__'_ he inwardly exclaimed when a small explosion occurred beneath him in the ground, effectively throwing him away when...

"**Rasengan!**" the two Naruto exclaimed as they slammed the white glowing spheres where Deidara was just a second ago, creating a deep crater as chunks of earth flew in random directions.

_'Fucking bastard! I can't believe he used that explosion to dodge my attack. I was sure I had him,'_ one of those two thought in annoyance.

KHDDDRR!

_'This brat...'_ Deidara thought with gritted teeth as he skidded on the ground, having taken some damage from his own explosion.

His eyes widened though upon hearing intense chirping sounds. The blonde Iwa nin whipped his head to see Naruto nearing him with his right hand covered in lightning.

"Too late!" Naruto exclaimed with narrowed eyes as he thrusted his hand forwards.

"**Chidori!**"

Thup!

His narrowed eyes widened in shock when Deidara caught his wrist in a blur, a frown on the Akatsuki members face.

"You know brat, your speed is average at best. I'll admit that attack of yours surprised me for a second there, but you're out of your league here hmm."

SNAP!

"ARGHH!" Naruto screamed in pain when the ex-terrorist bomber broke his wrist while the lightning slowly died down.

"_Naruto-kun!" _Ayumi exclaimed as the blonde gritted his teeth in pain.

"I now see why you're so dangerous hmm. You're art is appreciable kid," Deidara muttered, a grim expression on his face instead of the usual amused one.

Naruto, who was a bit crouched, his both eyes closed in searing pain, slowly opened his one eye as the blonde gritted his teeth.

"F-Fuck you!" he went for a kick at Deidara's gut.

SQUELCH!

A silent wind breezed through the area as both the blondes stood there. Deidara had a grave expression on his face while Naruto's eyes were currently widened, blood leaking from his lips to down his chin as he coughed some blood.

Standing behind him was another Deidara, holding a kunai which was currently embedded into the blonde's upper-right back.

_'I aimed for his heart, but he deliberately moved at the last second. How did he see my attack?'_ Deidara thought as his clone standing behind Naruto dissolved into mud. He then shifted his pupils, still holding the jinchuriki's broken wrist to see a clone watching them.

_'I see...it seems their visions are interlinked,'_ he thought in realization.

Meanwhile, Ayumi was panicking inside Naruto's mind while her eyes were getting glossy.

_"Na-Naruto! Hey! Hold yourself...I'll heal you in a second!" _she exclaimed when the whiskered blonde interrupted.

_"No Ayumi-chan, my chakra is currently holding the most of Sasori's poison. Your chakra will just make things worse,"_ he inwardly uttered as a smirk formed on his face despite his injuries while Deidara turned his eyes back to him.

_"Let's see if your plan works Ayumi-chan,"_ he spoke while the Akatsuki nin raised an eyebrow at the jinchuriki.

"You're about to die you know," Deidara verbalized in a low tone as he tapped his right foot on the ground. The loose soil on it began to 'vibrate', pebbles began to roll on the surface when...

Khddr! Khhdr!...Khdrrr!

Hundreds of clay snakes and centipedes erupted from the ground, now in mid air as they surrounded both Naruto and Deidara, the latter of whom glanced at Sasori to see him busy in his own battle.

The Akatsuki nin had a solemn look in his eyes, a frown on his face as he formed the half ram sign.

_'You have my respect kid...your art is definitely appreciable,'_ he thought, a resolute look in his eyes while Naruto seemed to be smiling now, blood dripping down his chin with his eyes still half lidded.

"Any last wishes hmm?" Deidara asked, his tone melancholic as he stared into the Rinnegan. Naruto however smiled.

"Y-Yeah...," he trailed, now panting while Deidara raised his eyebrows whereas the clay snakes and centipedes were on the ground, slowly crawling onto Naruto's body.

The whiskered blonde tilted his head as he spoke quietly...

"**Oroike no Jutsu **(Sexy Jutsu)"

POOF!

Deidara staggered a bit when Naruto was suddenly covered in smoke to reveal a...

_'What the hell?'_ the Akatsuki nin thought in shock, momentarily losing focus because of the completely unpredictable...absurd move by the jinchuriki.

SQUICH!

"Ngrghh!" sounds of chirping birds filled the area as Deidara coughed a large amount of blood.

Standing behind him was Naruto's clone, his right hand having completely pierced Deidara's earlier damaged shoulder, lightning crackling around his hands, its glowing nature giving a purple tint to Deidara and Naruto's face, the latter of whom had undone the transformation.

"Y-You bastard!" the blonde Iwa nin exclaimed, currently numb due to lightning coursing through it while the blonde just smirked.

"Never let your enemies get behind you."

Naruto lifted his left hand before placing on Deidara's right chest as he nodded to his clone.

CRRKKK!

"Argh!" both the blondes exclaimed when the clone dispelled into lightning, revealing itself to be a lightning clone as lightning coursed through their bodies. Naruto, having his hand in contact with Deidara's body too felt the shock while all the clay snakes and centipedes were rendered useless now making the clay user curse.

Deidara opened his eyes, panting heavily as he glared murderously at Naruto, who still had his left hand on the clay user's right chest.

"Why you...f-fucking bra-"

"**S-Shinra Tensei!**" Naruto exclaimed, his half lidded eyes now narrowed.

SWOOSH!

Deidara was thrown back at blistering speeds, his body flipping vertically in midair at whooping velocities as he sailed away from Naruto.

Thdrr!...Thdrdd!...Khdrrr!

His body sliding on the ground several times due to the crazy momentum, Deidara's limp body finally slid to a halt on the dirt.

_"Naruto...are you alright? Please just hold on...I won't let anything happen to you," _Ayumi spoke in a concerned voice as the whiskered blonde slid to his knees, panting heavily for he had put a lot of chakra in this 'Shinra Tensei'. He wiped the blood of his chin with his sleeve, the kunai still lodged in his back while he could feel his eyes getting heavy; his body was also getting numb.

"Damn...the p-poison...well, hehe...I can't believe that r-ridiculous idea of yours...worked Ayumi-chan," he stuttered with a smile, now sitting as he took deep breaths- desperately trying to hold on. Turning his head, he noticed his right broken wrist laying motionless on his right thigh while the blonde was using his other hand to support himself.

_"Naruto-kun, put some of your chakra in the seal," _Ayumi spoke sternly while his breathing was rasp.

_"Why?"_ he asked in curiosity when she spoke in a somewhat pleading and desperate voice.

_"Just do it please..."_

Sighing to himself, he pushed some of his chakra into the seal, already knowing what she was about to do.

POOF!

Naruto turned his head as Ayumi came out of the smoke, wearing a plain black kimono. She immediately took him a gentle hug, putting her left hand on the kunai embedded into his flesh on his back.

"Naruto-kun...I'm sorry," she muttered, her eyes glossy as she hugged him tightly, his head stuffed into her chest making him chuckle a bit.

"No...don't be...but, we h-have to get out of here," he verbalized in a low tone, his eyelids getting heavy while one of his clones went to assist Shizune in her battle with Guren. With his Uzumaki level reserves, even his shadow clones had considerable amounts of chakra.

Ayumi closed her eyes, her nine tails resting on the ground behind her as she tightly gripped the kunai on his back.

"A-Ayumi-chan, do you have a...argh!" the jinchuriki exclaimed when suddenly the kunai was pulled out of his back with a jerk, coughing a bit as the red haired bijuu (sitting beside him with the Naruto facing forward, towards Deidara) wrapped her arms around his neck, using her right hand to push his head deeper into her chest while the other hand held his right shoulder.

Tears were streaming down her face at the sight of her lover, he was in so much pain, it destroyed her from inside to see him like this.

_'Why does he have to endure so much? Why him? This is all happening because of me! First the invasions, then Itachi...and now this. Why can't he be left alone by these bastards!'_ she thought, her warm tears falling on Naruto's face.

"D-Don't cry Ayumi-chan...t-this is nothing, I'll be healed in no time at all," he uttered, lifting his left hand to wipe her tears off while his clones kept watching other battles. It seems Jiraiya was completely overpowering Orochimaru and Kabuto, both of whom were panting and low on chakra. His clone and Shizune were fighting off Guren while as expected, much to his aching heart, Tsunade was in tears at seeing his condition. Hinata and Shima were just defending themselves, also protecting an unconscious Tayuya in the process.

And now he was getting anxious, Hinata was panting heavily and was quite low on chakra whereas Shima too seemed to be tired, her sage mode already exhausted.

"Ha...n-never would've thought that k-kyuubi would possess a human form...a-and a female one at th-that," both Naruto and Ayumi snapped open their eyes to see Deidara limping towards them. The blonde Akatsuki had blood coated lips, his eyes too half lidded while he was holding his left wounded shoulder, blood dripping down his left hand.

"You!" Ayumi growled, gritting her teeth as she glared at Iwa's blonde in rage while Naruto released a shaky breath as he rubbed Ayumi's lower back with his left hand to calm her down.

Deidara had a small smirk on his face, currently panting as he just sat on the ground, it seemed as if he was badly injured too.

"You a-are the first one to h-have c-caught me o-off guard in a battle in years...w-who would have thought...a r-ridiculous technique such as that...just to distract me, you r-really are d-different...k-kyuubi jinchuriki," the clay user muttered, closing his eyes as he breathed deeply while Naruto narrowed his eyes.

_'What game is he playing now? When my lightning clone dispelled, all the clay in that bag of his was made useless. And he too seems to be exhausted. Well after being hit by a Rasengan and Chidori, who wouldn't? Also my last Shinra Tensei must have broken several bones in his body...still, I have to be careful. This guy is an S-rank missing nin after all,'_ Naruto thought while Ayumi held him somewhat possessively to her, glaring coldly at the Akatsuki member.

"My my...y-you two seem very close huh? P-Pretty unusual for a jinchuriki," Deidara verbalized making Ayumi growl in anger.

"Stay away from him ningen!" her voice dripping with venom. She really wished she had her chakra at this point of time, the bijuu wanted nothing but to rip this guy to shreds with her bare hands!

_'Strange, I feel no demonic chakra coming from her, nor is she showing the usual bloodlust that bijuu possess. And how did she come out of the seal anyway?'_ Deidara thought in confusion while Ayumi too had her own set of thoughts going on.

_'He was aiming to kill Naruto-kun. But why, they're supposed to capture the jinchuriki alive and then extract the bijuu. If it weren't for Kushina-chan's training, Naruto-kun most probably wouldn't have...'_ her thoughts trailed as she took a deep breath to calm her rapidly beating heart.

_'I...severely __underestimated__ him this time,' _Deidara thought with a frown as he continued to pant. Naruto however was concentrating on his white chakra, concentrating some of it on his broken wrist to heal it as quickly as possible.

Without one of his hands, he knew his whole wide arsenal of ninjutsu was useless.

His eyes however suddenly widened when he saw something via his clones...

_'Hinata!'_

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Shizune-chan...just hold on for a bit, we're gonna get out of here soon," Naruto's clone spoke in a low tone, currently standing in front of the panting black haired medic.

Shizune was sporting several bruises on her body, blood dripping down her right hand for Guren's crystal had completely pierced through it.

"I c-can handle a bit more, I'm just...low on chakra," she wheezed out, her one eye closed.

Standing opposite to them was Guren, who too was panting in exhaustion as she looked to be low on chakra.

_'I just used so much chakra when I was fighting Tsunade...damn,'_ the crystal user thought as she wiped the sweat off her forehead.

After the clone had jumped in, he had traded several blows with Guren. One thing that really confused him, and was clear to him, was that his crystal release was much weaker than hers. Her crystal shards had easily broken his crystal wall. He had expected her crystal release to be better considering it was her primary bloodline limit, but he didn't expect the gap to be this much.

_'Before we try to retreat, I have to make sure that this woman doesn't have enough chakra to stop us. Even__ if__ she's affected by Shizune-nii-chan's poison, I still have to be sure. I have to exhaust her a little more,'_ the clone thought, gazing at the crystal user with his Rinnegan.

He then suddenly bolted in Guren's direction, doing three signs in midway as lightning started to gather around his right hand, chirping sounds being made making her eyes widen.

_'Let's see if a fast point blank attack like Chidori is able to pierce it,'___the clone thought, his Rinnegan removing tunnel vision as he dashed forwards, inducing dust behind him while Guren went through a few hand seals before slamming her hands on the ground resulting in a crystal dome forming around her.

_'Here we go!'_ the whiskered blonde thought as he slammed the lightning technique onto the crystal.

CKHRRRKKK!

To his surprise, his hand was able to pierce the crystal structure, the rest of it remaining intact as the blonde stood there. His eyes though widened upon hearing the crystal user exclaim something incoherent through the hole.

Shizune's eyes widened when suddenly large crystal spikes protruded out from the dome, taking out the clone as the crystal dome slowly fell into pieces.

Guren was panting, her one eye closed while she was on his knees.

_'Damn...too low on chakra, I can't fight anymore,'_ she thought before turning her head to gaze at Orochimaru and Kabuto, both of whom seem to be exhausted making her frown.

_'We have to retreat. I can't let anything happen to Orochimaru-sama,'_ she thought before glancing at the black haired medic, relieved that she too seemed to be out of chakra.

Guren's eyes were half lidded, her breathing coming in labored breaths as she could also feel Shizune's poison taking affect, her body was slowly going numb.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

SQUICH!

"Hinata-chan!" Shima exclaimed, currently panting while in front of her was Hinata, a long blade having completely pierced her from behind to come out from her stomach, blood dripping from its tip.

The katana was being held by a human puppet, its body halfway buried into the ground. It seems it had attacked sneakily from beneath the ground.

"You Konoha ninja, is that all you do in a battle? Taking hits for your comrades? It seems you people don't value your lives at all," Sasori uttered, currently in his Hiruku puppet, its tail waving behind it.

Hinata's bleeding back was facing him while Shima, having gotten her sage mode exhausted was gazing at Hinata with a horror expression on her face.

"You idiot, you didn't have to do that for me!" the mother of toads exclaimed, it seemed the Hyuuga heiress had taken the hit for her.

Blood was leaking from Hinata's mouth, dripping down her chin as she coughed abruptly. Strands of hair were hanging in front of her face, her head lowered while her eyes, having Toyotama Byakugan still activated, were half lidded.

She smiled weakly at Shima, lifting her head a bit.

"S-Sorry...but m-my body j-ju..._'cough'..._just m-moved," her voice raspy as she held the blade protruding out from her stomach.

"So it seems your new Byakugan is pretty strong….nothing can escape from those eyes I see, not even underground attacks. That's a pretty interesting, I have to add you in my collection now," the Suna's puppet user stated when Shima stepped sideways to look past Hinata, her eyes widening in realization when she saw the earth beneath Sasori having a hole in it.

_'So that's how he did it, he made his puppet dig through the earth to attack us sneakily,'_ she thought with a frown when the puppet retracted the blade abruptly, making Hinata cough more as she fell to her knees while Naruto's clone, which had been tending to an unconscious Tayuya had also been dispelled during the fight when he tried to aid them.

_'Shit! What do we do now? This is getting out of hand. Both of these girls are now affected by the poison and Tsunade-chan can't fight right now,'_ Shima thought with a grave expression, turning her head to notice that Jiraiya was still trying to kill Orochimaru, but with the evasiveness of that snake, it sure was taking time. However, the snake sanin and Kabuto looked to be at their limits now.

CRKK!

Shima snapped her head when suddenly Naruto appeared beside Hinata in a burst of lightning.

"Hinata-chan!" he exclaimed, putting his left hand on her cheek while his damaged right hand remained limp on his side. He too looked to be in a very bad shape, his jounin-like vest already soaked by blood while the blonde was panting in exhaustion.

"Oh..." Sasori grunted as he turned his head to see Deidara on his knees, panting in exhaustion as his eyes widened in shock.

_'This kid...was able to do that much damage to Deidara?'_ the puppet user thought, not believing that someone like Deidara could end up like that against an inexperienced brat in front of him.

"H-Hey Hinata...c'mon, wake up!" Naruto exclaimed desperately, cupping her cheek as the Hyuga heiress slowly opened her eyes, the Toyotama Byakugan still activated.

"Na-Naruto-kun...," she exhaled weakly while the blonde's eyes were getting glossy.

_"Naruto-kun...control yourself...we have to concentrate on getting out of here. With that clay user, Orochimaru, his assistant and that crystal user exhausted, we have a much better chance of escaping. Don't worry about Hinata, she can be healed by Tsunade later," _Ayumi spoke seriously making him nod when Sasori uttered.

"If you want to save her, its best that you come with us and let Tsunade of the sanin treat her. Besides, you're already out of time. They're here at last," the puppet user verbalized making Naruto, Shima and Hinata's eyes widen at his words.

"Who are here?" Shima asked loudly as Sasori just kept quiet while Deidara had jumped on his bird, off which Naruto's Shinra Tensei had thrown him.

_'Shit! Are more of these guys coming?'_ Naruto thought in a mixture of frustration and panic.

Hinata took a deep breath as she slowly did some hand seals before quietly muttering...

"**Uzume**," Naruto, Shima and Sasori had surprised look on their faces as a glowing circle with two pink petals formed beneath Naruto and Hinata, the latter of whom's eyes were closed.

"H-Hinata-chan, what are you doing?" Naruto asked in a low tone harshly, concerned that she was pushing herself despite in her frail state.

The glowing circle however soon died down as Hinata opened her eyes, clutching his left hand weakly while there was a look of panic on her face.

"W-We have escape q-quickly. Two m-more of A-Akatsuki are approaching us s-several miles from here...from Konoha's d-direction," she stuttered making the blonde's eyes widen.

_'So they're coming from Konoha...it would mean that in case we manage to escape, they plan to intercept us on our way to Konoha. They've come prepared for this,'_ he pondered, trying to think of a way to get out of this mess.

_'Even if we get out of here, we still have to reach Konoha. And these guys surely would be waiting for us on the way...,'_ he thought, racking his brain when an idea clicked in his mind.

_'That's it! This should definitely work!'_ he thought, a look of hope crossing his face when Sasori's mouth opened, a metal tube becoming visible while he lifted his left arm towards them.

"Time to end this brat," the puppet user said while Naruto's eyes widened when he saw Sasori building up large amounts of chakra in his mouth as well as the left arm, through his Rinnegan that is.

_"Shit! I need your chakra Ayumi-chan!" _he inwardly shouted.

_"But what about the poison?"_ she asked in concern making him shake his head in frustration.

_"JUST DO IT!"_ he yelled as immediately the blonde could feel her chakra entering his system when Sasori's mouth opened further.

"Let's see you stop my thousand puppet's arms!" the puppet user exclaimed, building up more chakra when a large number of thin puppet hands began to come out of his mouth and left hand at blurry speeds.

"**Kugutsu n-**"

**WHAM!**

THDDRRR!

Naruto and Shima's pupils zoomed out in shock when Sasori's puppet, Hiruku, was shattered to pieces, courtesy of a monstrous punch by one blonde sanin.

A large crater formed beneath Sasori's crushed puppet due to the impact as a black blur shot out from the large puppet. Tsunade's eyes were icy cold as she stood up amongst the dust, some tears flowing with the wind from the bottom edge of her eyes while the earth had cracked up to even where Naruto was sitting due to the colossal blow.

"No one messes with my son!" she exclaimed with a frown, glaring at the figure wrapped in a black cloth.

Naruto however, his features already getting feral, turned his head to look at the empty barrier with wide eyes.

_'How did she come out of my barrier? And what about her fear of blood?'_ he thought when...

POOF!

Tsunade appeared in front of him, her back facing him.

"**K-Kaa-chan...**," he spoke making her and Shima snap their heads upon hearing his demonic voice. Tsunade's eyes however softened, fresh tears taking birth when she noticed his condition; conditions of the two girls beside him.

"I'm sorry Naru-chan...but, don't worry. I'll be done with this guy in minutes and then we can all go back to Konoha," she spoke while Naruto's eyes widened when he noticed hundreds of needles approaching. Just as he was about to shout, she tapped her right foot on the ground...

Thuk! Thik! Thup!...Thuk!

An earth wall rose in a blur in front of her to block all the incoming attacks effectively.

Coming out of his stupor, Naruto spoke in a low tone harshly.

"**You don't understand! Hinata-chan checked with her Toyotama Byakugan and she saw two more Akatsuki members coming here from Konoha's direction! We have to escape!**" this made the slug sanin's eyes widen as the earth wall crumbled in front of her while she turned her head back towards where a cloaked Sasori was standing.

"**I have a plan!**" he exclaimed as red chakra started to leak out of his body making Shima wary of him somewhat.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

"O-Orochimaru-sama, we have to retreat," Kabuto muttered, panting heavily while the snake sanin standing beside him too was sweating in exhaustion.

_'Tsunade seems to have somehow overcome her fear...we need to get out of here,'_ Orochimaru thought before whispering to Kabuto.

"You know the plan Kabuto," this made the silver haired medic nod.

Jiraiya had a smirk on his face as he glanced at where Tsunade was standing.

_'Well well, looks like she couldn't bare to see her godson get hurt huh?'_ he thought, now believing that things were on their side- currently still in sage mode.

"Jiraiya-sama!" he turned his head when Shizune appeared beside him in a puff of smoke, a weary look on her face while Guren too appeared beside Orochimaru.

"Shizune, you okay?" the toad sanin asked making her nod as she wiped the sweat off her brow.

"Just low on chakra," she muttered making him sigh.

"Go Kabuto," Orochimaru muttered, a panting Guren standing beside him while the silver haired medic nodded as he walked to stand in front of them. Jiraiya narrowed his eyes as he formed the ram seal.

'_No time to waste now, I have to catch at least one of them. Kabuto seems to be the right choice but if I get the crystal user, it wouldn't be bad too,'_ the toad sanin thought as he started to go through a couple of blurry hand seals.

Kabuto's eyes widened before they narrowed as he started to execute the seals for the planned technique.

"**Hijutsu Ninp-"**

"**Senpou: Doton: Yomi Numa! **(Sage Art: Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld) "

Jiraiya slammed his hands on the ground as instantly a large patch of earth beneath Kabuto, Orochimaru and Guren started to rumble. Orochimaru immediately realized the technique as he jumped just in time before the ground turned into sticky mud, pulling Guren and Kabuto into its depths.

"W-What..is this?" the crystal user exclaimed as she started to struggle. Kabuto too was slashing into the mud with his chakra coated kunai but Jiraiya's technique, in sage mode it seemed, was way too strong.

'_Hn…you think you can get out my sage techniques just like that?'_ Jiraiya thought with a smirk while Shizune watched the scene with surprise visible on her face. Most of the area was being dissolved into this deep mud pit as the two victims continued to struggle.

Orochimaru was gritting his teeth as he watched his two companions sink in. Tapping his earth chakra enhanced right foot on the ground, he muttered.

"**Doton: Tsuchi Kairou! **(Earth Release: Earth Corridor)," Jiraiya just smirked as he again put his palms on the ground.

'_Give it your best shot,'_ he inwardly exclaimed as the snake sanin poured chakra into his technique. Guren and Kabuto were now buried upto their necks when the mud started to separate in a thin line. Kabuto looked down as the mud began to extricate from his body sideways, same was happening with the crystal user.

Orochimaru gritted his teeth when the mud again enclosed around their bodies tightly, courtesy of Jiraiya who had poured more senjutsu chakra into the technique.

"You idiot, without the hand seals, your techniques are too weak against my sage mode," he taunted as his ex-teammate glared coldly at him.

'_Argh…damn it! This mud pit is just too strong. I have to do something…'_ Guren thought when she suddenly realized something. Both of her hands still in the mud, she went through some one handed seals inside the mud.

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes when the crystal user pulled out her right arm, much to his surprise.

'_How did she…?'_ he thought when Fukasaku pointed out.

"She encased her right arm in crystal, she's using its slippery property," this made the sanin sigh when Orochimaru jumped to land in front of the pit, giving time to the crystal user to get out as he watched for any attack from Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya-sama, she's getting away!" Shizune exclaimed in a low tone as Guren pulled her other arm out before going through a set of hand seals, her whole body now covered in a crystal layer, a result of her using her crystal armor.

The toad sanin didn't waste any time as he dashed towards the trio, leaving behind a violent gust of wind.

"G-Guren…help me!" Kabuto exclaimed with a frantic expression on his face, now his chin under the mud. The crystal user, who currently was panting due to chakra exhaustion, just spared him a glance before jumping by Orochimaru's side.

"**Senpou: Kebari Senbon! **(Sage Art: Hair Needle Senbon)"

Kabuto turned his head as he noticed a large number of needles approaching Orochimaru and Guren. His eyes widened in horror when the duo in front of him started to turn into crystal.

"Hey wait! Orochimaru-sama…." He yelled as the snake sanin glanced at him from over his shoulder with a serious expression on face.

CHTRRR!

The crystal, which had encased the duo shattered into millions of pieces upon being hit by the white needles.

KHDRRRH!

"Damn it!" Jiraiya exclaimed with gritted teeth as he skid to a halt in front of the shattered crystal pieces.

'_He escaped yet again…damn him! Every time he somehow manages to slip out!'_ the sanin thought in frustration, now noticing the lost look on Kabuto's face who was buried up to just under his nose.

"Well, seems like they left you, huh kid?" Jiraiya spoke with narrowed eyes while the silver haired medic was just speechless. They had left him, left him with these Konoha nin, they abandoned him….

"Don't worry Jiraiya-chan, at least you got his right hand man, this will be an invaluable asset to Konoha," Fukasaku spoke making the sanin nod as he performed more hand seals before slamming his right hand on the ground.

"**Kekkai: Gama Hyourou! **(Barrier: Toad Gourd Prison)" he shouted leading into a puff of smoke. The smoke cleared to reveal a 'gourd' shaped toad. Kabuto narrowed his eyes upon seeing the summon when they heard a shout.

"JIRAIYA!"

The sanin snapped his head back just in time when he felt his vest being grabbed. His eyes widened in shock as he found himself being lifted off the ground by the one and only Tsunade. Fukasaku leaped from his shoulder in the process while the slug sanin, now carrying him bridal style, took off in the opposite direction in a blur.

"Tsu-Tsunade! Wha-" he was cut off by a murderous glare by the medic while Jiraiya currently found himself in her arms, the toad sanin blushing up a storm in embarrassment as she dashed towards where Naruto was standing.

"No time to explain! We have to get out of here FAST!" her voice was a bit panicked making him narrow his eyes when he heard Fukasaku's voice from behind.

"I'll take care of the rest Jiraiya-chan!"

Thud!

"Ow!" Shizune exclaimed as she was unceremoniously dropped by Tsunade's clone near where Hinata and Tayuya were currently laying.

"You alright Shizune-chan?" she lifted her head for her eyes to widen.

"N-Naruto-kun…wh-what happened to you?" she asked as he turned his head back. Currently the two red chakra tails were swishing behind him, his feral features now easily noticeable while the blonde looked to be quite in pain.

"Argh! Drop me now will you?" she turned her head to see Jiraiya being dropped on the ground as the toad sanin grumbled in irritation. He had always dreamed of carrying Tsunade bridal style in his genin days, not the other way around!

"You think we'll let you escape," Sasori spoke, his voice now much smoother as the cloaked figure stood several meters in front of them.

"You have to cross me if you want to escape to Konoha," he spoke calmly making Tsunade narrow his eyes while Naruto suddenly slid to one knee, gritting his teeth while he could feel his vision getting blurry.

'_The poison….'_

"Naru-chan! You alright?" Tsunade stepped forward, an expression of concern on her face. The blonde really looked worse for the wear. There were two large holes in his trench coat as well as the vest on his back, exposing his recently healed skin while the most of his trench coat was soaked in blood now. Several bruises and cuts were still visible on his body as he panted in exertion.

Naruto lifted his right hand as he flexed his wrist, gritting his teeth when a jolt of pain surged through his right arm.

'_Still not fully healed yet…but this will do,'_ he thought as Jiraiya and Tsunade walked towards him.

"Kaa-chan…you know what to do," the blonde muttered making her nod.

"You sure you'll be able to pull it off?" she questioned as Sasori continued to stand there patiently. It wasn't his loss that they were taking their sweet time, he only had to stall them anyway.

"Just do it...Kaa-chan!" he now yelled in desperation, his eyes closed as the blonde tried to cope up with the pain. With the lethal poison weakening him along with Ayumi's youki tearing off his insides, he knew that he had a maximum of two-three minutes before succumbing to unconsciousness.

"What do you plan on-"

"Got it!" the medic sanin exclaimed, cutting off Jiraiya as she dashed past Naruto, towards where Sasori was standing. The cloaked figure of the puppet user just stayed still as Tsunade approached him at blurred speeds.

"Ero-senin! Toad mouth bind!" Naruto exclaimed loudly making Jiraiya narrow his eyes. Trusting his godson, he went through a few hand seals before slamming them on the ground.

The medic sanin however surprised Sasori when she jumped high into the air in her mid sprint.

'_What is she planning?'_

"**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!**" the Suna puppet user's eyes widened when dozens of shadow clones puffed into existence into mid air as they all descended in his direction, their fists reared back.

'_Here goes nothing!'_ Tsunade thought as she, along with her clones approached the ground with their chakra charged fists, her pony tails waving behind her wildly.

"**MUD…**" she started as they reached the ground, where a startled Sasori was standing.

"**CRATER!**"

_**BHAM!**_

The whole area was affected by the monstrous punches as the earth instantly shattered where Sasori was standing. A _huge_ crater formed where the puppet user was standing while chunks of earth uprooted from the ground over the _whole_ area, the impact of the mind boggling punches spreading through the decimated ground like an epidemic.

The effect was devastating, it could even be observed while standing several miles away from the top of a tree. The whole geography of the location- changed instantly as even the trees on the outskirts of the clearing were destroyed while large amounts of dirt and dust now covered the area.

Among the dust and debris, Jiraiya deactivated his 'Toad Mouth Bind' technique as he destroyed a chunk of earth above them with a Rasengan.

"Naru-chan!" the toad sage turned his head when Tsunade appeared beside the kneeling blonde via shunshin.

"**G-Great work K-Kaa-chan**," he muttered with a chuckle, his eyes shadowed as he slowly stood up while Tsunade refrained from touching him due to Ayumi's youki covering his body like a shroud.

"You'll have to do more than just change the landscape to defeat us," they turned their head upwards to notice the cloaked Sasori standing on a clay bird with Deidara sitting beside him, still panting in exhaustion.

Tsunade cursed inwardly as she glared at them.

'_Should've known that they would resort to that,'_ she thought while Naruto slowly stood up as more red chakra started to leak from him making Jiraiya look at him in surprise.

'_He's going even further? What's this kid planning?'_ he thought as the blonde formed a familiar seal.

"**We are not finished…assholes**," he murmured, now gritting his teeth because of excruciating pain as he concentrated _huge _amounts of chakra.

"**Stay close…**" he wheezed out making the blonde medic glance at him in confusion while Jiraiya knew all too well what he was planning.

"You've got a plan on how to escape? Cause we will need more than just clones," Jiraiya pointed out with a grim expression, this time trusting Naruto with their lives.

"**Yeah…**" the blonde muttered as he lifted his head while Tsunade's breathing hitched in her throat upon noticing his eyes- crimson red with two concentric rings surrounding a black vertical slit.

Deidara, who was currently holding on to his badly damaged shoulder, squinted his eyes in confusion as he observed the group with his eye scope.

'_What's he planning? Either way, we'll just follow them. Besides, those two are on their way and will just intercept them. You've got no chance to escape,'_ he thought with a serious expression when Sasori took out an average sized scroll. Deidara's eyes widened when he noticed the kanji on it.

"You're going to use that?" he questioned as a gust of wind blew past them, shuffling the cloak as it revealed a young teen's face with red hair, his eyes half lidded.

"Yes, just to be on the safe side," the puppet user spoke in a smooth voice as he reached inside his cloak. Hundreds of chakra strings emitted from his chest region to connect to the scroll. Using the strings, Sasori lifted the scroll in mid air.

"**Akahigi: Hyakki no Souen **(Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets)"

A large number of puppets began to fire off from the scroll in rapid bursts, each having several chakra strings connected to them.

"Naruto…look," Jiraiya pointed out, a surprised expression on his face as the trio lifted their heads for their pupils to zoom out in mind numbing shock. About a hundred of puppets had filled the sky, currently floating in mid air as they shadowed the destroyed area.

"H-How can someone control so many puppets at the same time. Even the best puppeteers can't control more than ten puppets at once!" Tsunade exclaimed in surprise while Naruto lowered his head.

'_Well this is Akatsuki, nothing surprises me anymore,'_ he thought as a third chakra tail protruded from his hip, his hair now becoming more spikier as wind began to howl around him.

"Naruto…whatever you're planning on doing, you'd better do it quick!" Jiraiya as the puppets began to descend on them, each of them holding all different sorts of pointed weapons, all dripped in Sasori's poison.

POOF!

"**E-Ero-sennin….cover yourself and others with toad mouth bind…and don't release it until my clone dispels**," he breathed out after creating a shadow clone before disappearing in a burst of chakra to appear on large chunk of earth in front of them as the blonde faced those puppets.

Jiraiya and Tsunade shared a look as they struggled with their decisions. The blonde medic took a deep sigh as she nodded at the toad sage with a smirk.

"I trust him…do it Jiraiya. This is not a gamble, I'm placing a sure bet on my son," she spoke with a determined look in his eyes making the toad sanin smirk back as he started to go through a few hand seals.

'_Here we go…please work,'_ Naruto thought as he built massive amounts of chakra, a crater forming beneath him while dust revolved around his body wildly.

'_What's he planning?'_ Sasori thought as he gazed at the red cloaked figure from above while Deidara too was eyeing the blonde with his eyescope in curiosity.

_**POOF!**_

'_Holy….'_ The blonde Iwa missing nin thought in surprise when the whole area was covered by Naruto's shadow clones. It had to be at least a thousand of them!

'_There goes his signature move….as informed by Itachi,'_ Sasori thought as his puppets descended towards where Tsunade and others were standing while the clones began to surround the group, climbing over each other as they shouted at each other to hurry up.

"What are they doing?" Deidara now asked with a serious expression as he stood up, now staring at the clones who had completely covered up the group along with the real Naruto.

_**Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!... Poof!**_

_**All **_of them dispelled at once, producing _godly_ amounts of smoke while Sasori stopped his puppets.

"Damn it! They are using the smoke as cover! I can't see a thing!" Deidara exclaimed as he tried to zoom in using his eye scope while Sasori cursed in anger.

"I can't attack them blindly, this can pose the risk of the jinchuriki being killed. Deidara can you see them now?" he asked in frustration making the blonde shake his head.

The smoke soon dissipated for them to see their target no longer standing there.

"That bastard! He tricked us!" Deidara yelled in anger as he clenched is fist, no one standing down there while Sasori turned towards his partner.

"Don't worry, they won't go far. The other ones are on their way from Konoha's direction, most probably they will bump into them. Let's just follow them," the puppet user uttered in a calm voice as he pulled back his puppets, sealing them back into the scroll. The bird soon flew towards Konoha at impressive speeds, the duo intent of meeting the injured group again.

**Hi no Kuni: ****Unknown ****Forests****:**** Several Miles Away from Tanzaku Town**

"Oi! Hurry up dammit! We have to fuck up the jinchuriki!" a silver haired figure, wearing an Akatsuki cloak with a large red scythe on his back yelled over his shoulder.

"Shut up Hidan, I'm going as fast as I can. Don't piss me off, or else I'll kill you," another figure, only a little behind the first one spoke in a muffled voice, wearing a slashed hitai-ate of Takigakure.

"Ha! You'll kill me? That's not possible as long as Jashin-sama is with me! No one can kill me!" Hidan exclaimed with a crazed gleam in his eyes as the duo blurred through the forests at neck breaking speeds.

"That will change if you don't sto-"

Kakuzu stopped speaking when they felt the trees begin to rumble as the earth started to shake a bit. Losing his balance due to the disturbance, Hidan flipped in mid air as he landed on his feet on the ground.

"What the hell? Was it an earthquake?" Hidan asked as the ground had stopped shaking now while Kakuzu just stood there up on the branch, an impatient look on his face.

"Hurry up Hidan, we don't have much time," Kakuzu verbalized as he took off in the direction of Tanzaku town making a vein pop on Hidan's forehead.

"That bastard, always bossing around," he articulated in a low tone before jumping back on track, speeding up to catch with his partner.

**Hi no Kuni: Five Miles Away From Konoha: Fifteen Minutes Later**

**BOOM!**

A large explosion took place in a small clearing, surrounded by dense forests.

KHRDDD!

A huge figure jumped out of the destroyed earth in a blur to land on the clear ground. The smoke slowly cleared to reveal a large brown serpentine dragon having five claws on each of his limbs with no wings. His eyes were blood red as the dragon lowered his head towards the ground. Opening his large mouth, a blonde figure slowly rolled out from its tongue along with a somewhat large rubbery, slimy ball.

The blonde seemed to be panting, laying on the ground on his back. His eyes were closed as he laughed to himself.

"I…W-We did it…" he muttered, taking deep breaths, now chuckling to himself.

"_I'm so glad you're okay Naruto-kun!"_

"**Uzumaki Naruto….**" He squinted his eyes open to turn his head towards the large dragon. His smile widened as the blonde gave the nice guy pose, still laughing lightly.

"T-Thanks Dilong-sama….," he wheezed out, coughing abruptly while the dragon seemed to nod lightly.

"**No problem…just take care of yourself. And if you need me again, don't hesitate to call me kid**," he said making the jinchuriki nod. Shifting his pupils towards the large rubbery substance, a look of realization dawned on his face.

'_Oh yeah….the clone,'_ he thought before dispelling his clone. The substance instantly began to dissipate into the air to reveal Jiraiya, a concerned Tsunade and Shizune while Hinata and Tayuya were still unconscious on the ground.

"Naru-chan!" the blonde medic exclaimed as she immediately rushed to his side, a worried look on her face as she took his upper body in her arms. Jiraiya however turned his head to look at the large dragon standing behind them as he whistled in appreciation.

'_Now that's one intimidating summon,'_ he thought before turning back towards the blonde duo, a smile gracing his lips as he watched them.

"A-Are you alright?" Tsunade asked as she kissed his cheek making him laugh a bit.

"O-Of course I am Kaa-chan! J-Just a bit out of s-shape," he spoke as tears welled up in her eyes. Naruto was taken aback when she suddenly hugged him, her arms tightly wrapped, rather protectively around his injured frame.

"I'm…I'm so sorry! I wouldn't let you suffer like that ever again!" she exclaimed, tears now streaming down her cheeks while Shizune too smiled at the sight as she sighed in relief.

'_Thank Kami….we're alive. I thought that we were gone for sure,'_ she thought before feeling a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, you okay Shizune?" she lifted her head to notice Jiraiya smiling at her making her nod with a smile.

"I am Jiraiya-sama, but we need to treat these two quickly," she muttered while eyeing Hinata and Tayuya.

"**I'll take my leave now….Uzumaki Naruto**," all of them turned their heads, especially Tsunade, whose eyes widened upon noticing the large dragon.

'_A dragon? Naru-chan possesses the Elemental Dragon's Summoning contract?'_ she thought in surprise as the large summon puffed into large amounts of smoke.

"Tsunade, I think you should first look over these two," Jiraiya called as he pointed towards the two unconscious kunoichi making Naruto jerk upwards.

"Argh!" he exclaimed when excruciating pain surged through his system making Tsunade whip her head back as she gently pushed him back on the ground, a stern motherly look taking birth in her eyes.

"Uzumaki Naruto, don't you dare move from your spot until I say so!" she declared making him nod as he panted.

"Shizune!"

"H-Hai Tsunade-sama!" the black haired medic was instantly by her master's side.

"Here, look after Naru-chan while I treat those two. I already created the antidote for the poison a few days ago, so it should be quick," Tsunade uttered, handing a syringe to Shizune for her son while Naruto inwardly slapped his head.

'_Damn….all that work and she's now telling us that she had the antidote! Well I guess….it was not her fault too. Things just happened way too fast,'_ he thought when Ayumi squealed inside him in happiness.

"_That's great! I thought it would take time to heal you….this calls for a PARTY NARUTO-KUN! And for some hot steamy sex too!" _the blonde sweatdropped at his lover's antics, a dark blush forming on his cheeks while Shizune used the syringe on his left bicep, his gear was already torn in several places. Most of his bare upper body was visible in fact.

"_You pervert! I was close to dying just a few moments ago and you're still thinking about sex?" _he exclaimed making the bijuu pout.

"_Hey! I was the one who suggested that idea against that clay bastard! Don't tell that I didn't help you at all! And now I want some reward for that!" _ she 'hmphed' childishly making him sigh inwardly.

"_Yeah…thank you Ayumi-chan. But at least wait for me to heal, then I'll give you anything you want,"_ he promised sincerely as a devious gleam entered the bijuu's eyes.

"_Anything?" _she asked innocently making him nod inwardly.

"_Well then, I can't wait for you to heal! We'll do some fu~n things Naruto-kuuun,"_ she purred seductively making him blush lightly. No matter how many times she acted so…..direct, he could never get used to it.

Meanwhile Jiraiya sat down with a jerk as he wiped his forehead with a sigh.

'_That was a close one….a real close one,'_ he thought before lifting his head to glance at Naruto, a smile gracing his lips.

'_You would be proud Kushina….Minato…look how fast your son is growing. He's steadily growing stronger every day, carving his own shinobi path,'_ the toad sanin pondered as he stared at his godson fondly.

"You're proud of him huh?" he turned his head to notice Tsunade who too was sitting beside him as she stared at her godson….or rather, her son with a smile, it seems she had already given the antidotes to the two kunoichi.

"Yeah…who wouldn't be?" Jiraiya chuckled making her smile brightly before he glanced at Hinata and Tayuya behind them.

"How are those two?" he asked making her 'hmm' in response.

"They will be alright, aside from the poison, nothing is life threatening. I've already given them the antidotes, they should fully recover within a week," this made him sigh in relief.

"These two are really something, going up against an S-rank nin like Sasori without running away….the next generation is really something huh?" he said making her chuckle.

"Yes, they are strong….very strong. I'm impressed by these two. One is a 'take no shit' attitude kunoichi…" the toad sanin chuckled at this as he glanced at Tayuya.

"…while the other, well let's just say that she's the first Hyuga I like," the two laughed heartily at that.

"OW! Shizune-nee-chan! It huuurts…ITAI~!"

"Oh stop being a pussy Naruto-kun! It's only a damn needle!" Shizune exclaimed in her 'sister mode' while Tsunade frowned at that.

"Oi Shizune!" she exclaimed with that motherly tone of hers as the blonde medic stood up, now walking towards Naruto. Jiraiya snickered to himself as he saw Tsunade berating her 'daughter' for being rough on her 'Naru-chan'.

'_Yeah…she got her family back. Just wait till you meet Kushina Tsunade.'_

**Well, the Tsunade Retrieval Arc finally ends! And now the several of the upcoming chapters, they would be like- fillers with the plot progressing somewhat slowly. It will focus on romance and drama, focusing on building relationships and just some light stuff which should bring a smile to your faces lol. Oh...there will be lemons, I don't care if this gets deleted, I'll just post this story again. I'm NOT scared! CHA! XD**

**I think the upcoming small filler arc is much needed for the story after its somewhat dark phase since the last 8-9 chapters. :)**

**Anyway, this is the ****longest**** chapter of this story up until now with 9.5K+ words, so please review. :)**

**N6023**


	45. Reunion

**Chapter 45-Reunion**

"OW! Shizune-nee-chan! It huuurts…ITAI~!"

"Oh stop being a pussy Naruto-kun! It's only a damn needle!" Shizune exclaimed in her 'sister mode' while Tsunade frowned at that.

"Oi Shizune!" she exclaimed with that motherly tone of hers as the blonde medic stood up, now walking towards Naruto. Jiraiya snickered to himself as he saw Tsunade berating her 'daughter' for being rough on her 'Naru-chan'.

'_Yeah…she got her family back. Just wait till you meet Kushina Tsunade.'_

**Konoha: Hokage's Office**

"You will meet your client downstairs in the waiting room. This is an easy A-rank mission, so I'm expecting it to go smoothly for you two. Try to return to the village as quickly as possible," the godaime hokage, currently wearing a loose sleeveless sky blue kimono with a dark blue sash on her waist along with a maroon skirt covering upto her upper thighs, spoke with authority. She was currently sitting behind her desk, piles of papers laying on the table beside her while the light orange hued sun rays pierced through the large windows behind her, dimly illuminating her office.

"Hai...hokage-sama," Anko responded with a neutral expression on her face while a serious looking Hana was standing beside her.

Kushina stared at the two jounin, more like her little sisters as a sigh escaped her lips.

"And listen, don't try to show off or anything. Complete the mission as fast as you can and return," this time, some emotions seeped into Kushina's voice.

"Relax nee-chan...we are not kids anymore. And don't worry, we won't miss the chance to see Naruto-kun when he arrives," Hana uttered with a light grin making the hokage blush lightly in embarrassment of being caught so easily.

"Anyway..." the red head coughed to regain her composure as she spoke in her professional tone.

"You may leave now," both Anko and Hana nodded as they turned to leave.

"See you in a few days nee-chan," Hana verbalized over her shoulder with a smile.

"And try not to heat up this place with Naruto-kun until we return," Anko articulated with a bright grin making Hana snicker quietly as the duo quickly closed the door before a book slammed into it.

"W-What does that mean'ttebane?" a furiously blushing Kushina yelled anxiously as she sighed to herself, leaning back into her chair. The female Uzumaki closed her eyes.

_'I miss him so much. Where are you Naru-kun?'_ she pondered, her hand on her heart when an image of his grinning face flashed in her mind. She opened her eyelids to chuckle softly as the red head shook her head lightly.

_'You just can't leave me now can you Naru-kun? Wherever I go, whenever I close my eyes, I only see you. Whenever I sleep, I dream of you. Whenever I smile, I think of you. Whenever I cry I want to be in your arms. I really am hopelessly in love with you, aren't I?'_ she thought with a giggle.

Several days ago she had received news from Jiraiya that Naruto had fully recovered. It had made her almost jump off her seat in joy as tears of huge relief had cascaded down her cheeks. Though it also saddened her upon reading the letter further that her son had suffered emotionally too.

And she knew that emotional scars would take time to heal.

_'It doesn't matter though. I'll be there for him at every step, I'll give him all the love he needs! I'll be everything that he wants,'_ Kushina thought with that patented Uzumaki determination as she smiled softly, now gazing outside through the windows.

Tomorrow...

_'Tomorrow...he'll be coming back tomorrow!'_ she squealed mentally as her heart started to beat faster. She couldn't wait to take him in her arms and kiss the living daylights out of him! She would remind him that his 'Kaa-san'...his 'Kushina-chan' would always be there for him, that he had people here who cared for him, who loved him. He didn't need to cry over that traitor!

And Itachi...

A frown took birth on her face, replacing her serene expression.

_'You will pay...I will never forgive you for what you did to Naru-kun. First you, and then that bastard war hawk. I swear on my Uzumaki blood that I'll hunt you two down personally,' _she thought with a cold look in her eyes, clenching her fists in anger. Naruto may have had persuaded her to forgive the elder villagers for ruining his childhood, but this...these two along with that masked man, they were definitely on her 'to kill' list.

She didn't care if Itachi was her student, but he had crossed the line this time. Besides, even if she wanted or not, to her, as the godaime hokage, he was a missing nin anyway. He was a threat to Konoha, to the village she had sworn to protect, but most importantly, he was a threat to the blonde she loved with all her heart.

Shifting her mind off the 'bloodshed' topics, the reflection in her violet orbs shimmered with extreme happiness when she remembered that Tsunade, her 'Kaa-san' would be coming home tomorrow. It had been a month since she had seen her surrogate mother after all.

The red head was brought out of her musings when the door was knocked gently. Turning her chair, she adopted a serious expression.

"Enter"

The door opened for a black, raven haired woman to enter the office, a small smile on her face.

"Mikoto-chan!" Kushina exclaimed with a grin as she jumped off her seat to rush towards her best friend, taking the Uchiha in a tight hug. Mikoto smiled warmly as she hugged her red head friend back.

"So, how was your first mission in such a long time?" the red head asked with a giddy smile, slinging an arm around her friend's shoulder making Mikoto shake her head with a chuckle.

"Kushi-chan, you're the godaime hokage now. Act like one," the Uchiha matriarch muttered with a teasing smile making the hokage pout.

"I'll act like I want to. And if the elders have any problem with it, I'll just kick their asses!" she exclaimed while thumping her fist into her other palm whereas Mikoto just sighed in exasperation as she walked to sit on a chair in front of the hokage's desk.

'_Really…she's the same as ever. One would've thought that becoming the hokage would make her more responsible but no….,' _the raven haired kunoichi thought while Kushina occupied her seat.

"And how many times have I told you not to call me 'Kushi-chan'?" she asked in annoyance making Mikoto raise her eyebrow, a mischievous glint entering her eyes.

"Pardon? But Naruto-kun told me that you liked that name," she retorted as the red head blushed in embarrassment.

"W-Well, I haven't told him yet….I told you that I don't like that name!" the Uzumaki articulated with a 'hmph' as Mikoto leaned forward, placing her elbows on the desk- an amused smile on her face.

"You haven't told him yet? Or could it be that you actually like that name only when Naruto-kun uses it?"

"W-What are you talking about dattebane?" Kushina spoke loudly, a tomato red blush on her face making Mikoto giggle at her expense.

"Oh Kami, you actually do!" she accused, laughing loudly as a vein popped on Kushina's forehead.

"Shut up Mikoto-chan, or I will kick your ass," the red haired hokage muttered sweetly as the raven haired kunoichi stopped laughing abruptly, a mock expression of horror on her face.

"Oh my Kami! I'm scared! Kushi-chan is going to kick my ass," Kushina's eyebrows twitched at that she glared at her best friend who smirked at her.

"Are you forgetting…Ku-shi-chan, that I'm the Kawarimi no Kami? And last time we sparred, I think I was the one who won, right?" the Uchiha matriarch teased making her smile dangerously.

"Oh, is that so? Then why not do it again? Cause you know…I have the Sharingan too this time?" Kushina said confidently, her Sharingan staring into Mikoto's surprised onyx eyes.

'_Oh damn….I forgot she now has the Sharingan too,'_ the Uchiha matriarch thought as she laughed nervously. Even she knew not to mess with her best friend, especially now that she too has the Sharingan. Though if they did fight while going all out, she knew that Kushina just had way too many aces up her sleeve. Her ninjutsu, taijutsu, kenjutsu and fuinjutsu were already strong enough and earlier Mikoto used her famed substitution techniques in conjunction with her genjutsu to fight her best friend on equal terms, but now with the Sharingan….she knew that Kushina would be a devastating opponent. She was sure that her genjutsu must have been improved by leaps and bounds now.

"A-Anyway, the mission went well," she replied making Kushina smirk victoriously before she grinned lightly at her friend.

"But that client was a bloody pervert! He kept staring at my ass," Mikoto spoke with a frown as she crossed her arms in front of her chest making Kushina giggle.

"Wow, seems like you've still got it Mikoto-chan," she verbalized making the black haired kunoichi pout.

"But it's not fair that you get to skip the twelve years of your life while I only skipped six or seven," this made Kushina sweatdrop.

'_Talk about being pessimistic…she doesn't care about the fact that she was brought back from the dead.'_

"Anyway, so Naruto-kun and Tsunade-sama would be returning tomorrow right?" Mikoto asked with a bright smile making the hokage nod in excitement.

"Yup! Kaa-san and Naru-kun would be returning tomorrow! I'm so happy Mikoto-chan! It's like I've fully got my family back," Mikoto's smile turned a bit sadder as she averted her gaze, rubbing her forearm softly. It seems she still hadn't gotten over it.

Itachi, her eldest son, had murdered her family, her whole clan years ago. Everything she had, it was stripped away from her in one night.

'_But still, they did say that Itachi didn't do that of his own free will. He did that…..to protect the village,'_ Mikoto thought, her smile now vanished as she stared at her lap.

"Mikoto…." She lifted her head to gaze into Kushina's concerned violet orbs as she offered her best friend a soft smile.

"Are you alright?" the hokage asked softly making her nod.

"Yeah, I am. It's just that….I'm still not over it Kushina. No matter how hard I try, that night, those memories, they…." Mikoto took a deep breath as she pulled back her incoming tears, closing her eyes while Kushina averted her own gaze, sadness lurking in them.

Upon her orders, Mikoto was still kept in the dark about what had happened regarding Itachi and Naruto a week ago. It hurt her very much to lie to her best friend, but she had to do it for Mikoto's sake. The Uchiha still hadn't gotten over what had happened to her clan, to her family, Kushina didn't want to burden her best friend with such heart breaking news. She knew it would break Mikoto.

'_I'm sorry Mikoto…you may hate me for this, but it's for your own good. I will definitely tell you in the near future, but not now,'_ the godaime hokage thought as she nodded to herself while Mikoto seemed to be lost in her own thoughts. Kushina's eyes softened as she gazed at the broken look on her friend's face.

"C'mon…." standing up from her seat, she walked around her desk to gently pull her friend to her feet.

"Where?"

"Let's just go for a walk," Kushina spoke with a smile as she created a shadow clone, ordering it do the paperwork. Mikoto sighed as she just walked in tow with her friend. She knew the stubborn Uzumaki, if she wanted to stroll around with her, then she wouldn't leave her until the Uchiha agreed.

**Outskirts of Konoha: A Bit Away from North Gate**

"Hurry up ero-sennin! We're almost there!" Naruto spoke in irritation as he walked in front of the group, an unconscious Hinata in his arms.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that?" Jiraiya's equally annoyed voice came from behind, who currently was carrying an unconscious Tayuya in his arms. Tsunade sighed as she kept walking along with Shizune. It had been like this the whole way, the two just kept fighting over trivial things. Seriously, she could understand Naruto, but Jiraiya too kept acting like a kid!

"Heh! You call yourself super-pervert yet you can't accept a simple name which so suits you," the blonde spoke with a smirk, his trenchcoat flowing with the light breeze while Jiraiya's eyebrow twitched at that. He grumbled under his breath while Shizune quietly snickered to herself.

After being healed by Tsunade, Naruto had insisted that they go to Konoha right away since the Akatsuki could still be searching for him, that and Hinata and Tayuya needed to be admitted into the hospital where they could rest safely. The blonde jinchuriki however still wasn't fully healed yet. His whole upper body was bandaged along with his earlier broken wrist. The bandages however showed signs of only outward injuries, but his body had suffered internally too. Mainly because of the poison and Ayumi's youki.

His muscles were still torn in several places but they were already being healed by his chakra, though at a very slow rate. Shizune too had her whole right hand bandaged, through which Guren's crystal spear had completely pierced through.

Tayuya's whole upper body, like Naruto was bandaged duo to Sasori's senbon whereas Hinata's stomach area was bandaged, though it was mostly healed now due to Tsunade. So, the only uninjured ones in the group were Tsunade and Jiraiya, not a surprise for an onlooker considering both were one of the legendary sanin.

"Hey Naru-chan, how are you feeling now?" Tsunade asked as she stepped forward, a look of concern on her face making him smile at her.

"I'm fine Kaa-chan. But don't you worry about me, I'll heal completely in a few days. You just concentrate on the surprise waiting for you just ahead of us," he uttered with a grin making the medic sanin pout.

"How am I supposed to concentrate on something when I don't even know what it is? And why can't you tell me of this surprise now?" she asked eagerly making him shake his head as the blonde tightened his jaw, trying not to laugh.

"Nope, you'll have to wait Kaa-chan," he snickered as Tsunade just sighed in defeat. Really, Uzumaki and their stubbornness…it was legendary.

"And oh yeah…Shizune-nee-chan, it's a surprise for you as well," he verbalized over his shoulder making the black medic's eyebrows lift in genuine surprise.

"For me too?" she asked.

"Yep…just you wait," Jiraiya articulated with mirth in his voice as they neared the gates. Naruto lowered his head as he gazed at the unconscious face of Hinata, his lips curving upwards in a soft smile.

"So, sensei is still the hokage Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked over her shoulder as she walked beside Naruto who just chuckled softly to himself while the toad sanin smirked in amusement.

"No, the godaime hokage has already been appointed. That's the surprise anyway," he replied making the blonde medic squint her eyes in thought while Shizune too was confused. Naruto however got an idea as he handed Hinata over to Tsunade.

"What are you doing?" the slug sanin asked in confusion when the blonde jinchuriki lifted his hand to put his index and middle finger on his side neck. Tsunade's eyes however widened when she noticed a red seal on his skin.

"Kai," Naruto softly muttered as he activated the Uzushio seal, a warm smile on his face.

**Konoha: With Kushina and Mikoto**

"Makes you remember our own childhood days, huh Mikoto-chan?" Kushina spoke in a low tone with a smile, the duo currently sitting on a bench as they watched children playing in the park. A cool breeze was gently flowing across them as Mikoto nodded with her, a reminiscent smile on her face.

"Hai…we used to have so much fun, huh? Back then, no responsibilities, no goals, no duties, nothing…just our own little world," she uttered, her hands in her lap. Kushina wrapped an arm around her shoulder, pulling in her friend. Mikoto sighed as she rested her head on her best friend's shoulder, the sun now setting down.

"Don't worry Mikoto…everything will be alright," Kushina whispered with a smile as she comforted her friend who just nodded back as she watched the children playing with a sad smile on her face.

"_Hey Kaa-san…"_

Kushina's eyes widened in shock when she heard a familiar voice, the Uzushio seal on her neck now glowing red. The grip on Mikoto's shoulder loosened as she lifted her trembling right hand to activate the seal.

"Kai…" she whispered softly, as if, still in a daze. Her eyes were now glossy….he couldn't be, could he? But the seal was supposed to work only within a limited distance…he had to be!

"_N-Naru-kun….?"_ She telepathically asked in a quivering voice while Mikoto turned her head to gaze at Kushina in confusion.

"Kushina?" she asked who just concentrated on the link. Kushina however heard nothing but silence making her sigh.

'_I must be hearing things….'_ the red head thought sadly as she shook her head, wiping her eyes. Just as she was about to deactivate the seal….

"_The one and only….Kushina-chan…"_

Mikoto watched in confusion as Kushina's eyes widened in shock again as tears began to leak down her cheeks.

"Kushina, what's wrong?" the Uchiha matriarch asked in concern as she squeezed her friend's shoulder who just shook her head, wiping her cheeks quickly.

"_N-Naru-kun! Is that you'ttebane?"_ Kushina asked anxiously, her heart beating rapidly. Could it be that Anko was playing another prank on her, she too had the Uzushio seal after all. And IF this was a prank, only Kami save that woman from her wrath- little sister or not!

"Hey, you alright?" Mikoto nudged her friend gently when she noticed the glowing seal on Kushina's neck, a look of realization coming onto her face.

'_Must be talking to Anko about something…but why is she crying?'_ she thought.

"_Yep! We've just entered through the north gate dattebayo!"_ his excited voice reverberated through her body as her lips curled upwards into a bright megawatt smile.

"YEAH!" Mikoto squealed when she was suddenly pulled to her feet by her best friend.

"Kushina, wha-"

"No time to explain Mikoto-chan! Let's go dattebane!" the anxious hokage uttered with a grin as the duo dissolved into water.

"Our hokage….sure is impulsive huh?" a woman in her mid thirties spoke to her husband who had come to take their children. The man, a jounin, chuckled as he wrapped an arm around her wife.

"Hehe…of course, but things are never dull around her….dattebane," the two burst out in laughter at the jounin's attempt at their hokage's mimicry.

**Konoha: North Gate**

"Now what are we waiting for Naru-chan?" Tsunade asked with a sigh, Hinata resting in her arms while the group was currently standing just outside the gate. Naruto had a foxy grin on his face as he just continued to stand there, his eyes closed as the blonde shuddered in anticipation of his latest prank.

"_This has to be my BEST prank dattebayo!"_ he snickered to himself while Jiraiya too had an equally stupid grin on his face, Tayuya in his arms.

"Can't you tell us what the surprise is now Naruto-kun?" Shizune uttered with a pout making him shake his head excitedly.

"Just a few more seconds nee-chan!" he exclaimed over his shoulder making her sigh. Really, sometimes he was a handful. How big the surprise could be that he was making them stand just outside the gate like idiots. Even the guards were staring at them in confusion, waiting for them to enter.

"_Oh hehehe….this should be good,"_ Ayumi chuckled, eating popcorn as she prepared herself for the upcoming drama-fest.

"The new hokage is coming to greet us!" the whiskered blonde declared with a bright grin as he could feel Kushina drawing closer with his Uzushio seal, they could tell each other's location within a limited distance after all.

"Uh huh….I wonder who that is," Tsunade muttered with a bored expression on her face. Right now, after being emotionally drained and having healing these three teens, she wanted nothing more than to just snuggle her face in a comfy pillow and sleep into the oblivion- sharing Shizune's thoughts.

'_Here she comes.'_

Turning to the slug sanin, his grin only widened, something which sent chills down Tsunade and Shizune's spine. That grin….it was an indicator of one of his grand pranks nearing success.

"And I present to you the most pleasant surprise of the millennium, our new….," his voice trailed while Jiraiya was now shivering in anticipation, he could say that he was now honestly enjoying one of his godson's pranks for once! Tsunade and Shizune though sported skeptical expressions on their faces when the blonde prankmaster lifted his right hand to point his index finger, with a jerk, at an empty spot inside the gate.

"….godaime hokage!"

SPLASH!

They turned their heads to see swirling water which soon formed two figures, one of which was already dashing towards them.

"Naru-kun!" everyone saw a familiar red blur before it tackled the blonde jinchuriki, lifting him off his feet as the duo slid on the ground.

"Ow ow! Ahaha…Kaa-san, easy there! I'm still hurt!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes closed as he laughed a bit painfully while Kushina hugged him tightly to her- her face buried in his chest. The red head's eyes were currently closed as she snuggled into his warmth, making sure that he was right there in her arms- oblivious to the world.

The blonde's eyes opened in surprise when he felt wetness on his dark blue sweat shirt, having discarded his damaged jounin-like vest. A warm smile took birth on his face as he hugged her back.

"You're back'ttebane!" she exclaimed, her voice muffled making him grin lightly.

"O-Of course I'm back! I'd never leave you," he replied with a chuckle when she lifted her head, her eyes reddish while her cheeks were wet. Her ecstatic violet orbs met excited oceanic pools as her soft hands began to cup his cheeks- her eyes shimmering with intense happiness. Naruto's smile softened as he placed his hand over hers.

"I missed you Kaa-san," he whispered as her lips curled into a soft smile, her lower lip trembling. Here he was, in her arms again. The last time she had seen him, he was on a hospital bed, fully bandaged and hanging on for his life. His face was pale, and now... he was glowing, full of life. Those electric blue eyes- enchanting as always to her, making her swoon inwardly, oh how beautiful they were! She had missed those eyes, those whiskers, that heart melting smile of his, that damn foxy grin of his!

She didn't want to act this excited upon his return. In fact, Kushina had planned it all out on what she would do when he returned. She knew that she would act formally when they would meet either in her office or at the north gate, that she would just act like a hokage and offer him a smile. Though she had planned that the moment they were alone, she would pounce on him. But….but he was supposed to come tomorrow! Him returning now, was such an exciting surprise that she couldn't hold herself! He was her baby, her lover…she loved him with all heart, consequences of 'not acting your rank' be damned; this was a happy moment!

Kushina started to lean in as she caressed his cheek with her left hand with the other one sifting through his blonde locks. Naruto, lost in the moment, too started to lean in as he parted his lips.

"_Naruto-kun, Tsunade is still here," _Ayumi warned making his half lidded eyes snap open as he turned his face sideways leading into Kushina kissing his cheek. The red head opened her eyes in surprise.

"Naru-kun….?" She spoke in confusion while the blonde turned his head back to smile at her, before averting his gaze to a specific spot behind her.

"K-Kushina?" her violet eyes widened upon hearing a familiar voice. Getting off of Naruto, she turned her head back to see a shocked Tsunade staring at her, along with Shizune of course while Mikoto and Jiraiya were smiling at her in amusement.

Naruto stood up as he dusted off his trenchcoat. He smiled sadly upon noticing the tears freely streaming down Tsunade and Shizune's cheeks.

Kushina however smiled at them as she found herself getting nervous at being stared at so intensely.

"Hey there….Kaa-san," she greeted, a soft angelic smile on her face while Tsunade stood stunned, not knowing how to react, what to speak. She was just….no words could imagine what she was currently feeling.

"Kaa-san, can't you be a little more….expressive? You may be meeting her after only a month, but Kaa-chan hasn't seen you for twelve years. Just a few seconds ago, she thought you were dead," the blonde pointed out in a reprimanding tone making the Uzumaki redhead rub the back of her head as she laughed sheepishly.

"Ahaha…yeah you're right'ttebane. But um…" she spoke hesitantly, not sure what to do. Naruto however sighed as he turned his pupils back towards his surrogate mother.

"Well Kaa-chan….as you can see, Kaa-san is alive," Mikoto giggled quietly to herself at the 'Kaa-chan' and 'Kaa-san' mix up.

'_Wow….this is going to be good, he has two mothers now….Kaa-chan and Kaa-san,'_ she thought in amusement, now watching Kushina's 'I-don't-know-what-to-do' expression with mirth in her eyes.

"B-But….how?" Tsunade choked out as her warm tears fell on the ground, the blonde sanin taking a startling step back.

"W-Weren't you….d-dead?" Shizune stuttered, still not being able to come over her shock. Kushina however just grinned sheepishly.

"I…hehe, well….that's a…kinda long story you know," Naruto rolled his eyes as he started to push his lover towards the astounded sanin.

"W-What are you doing Naru-kun?" she stammered.

"I want a happy reunion and its weird with you two just staring at each other," he spoke sternly as now Kushina and Tsunade stood in front of each other. Walking around the red head, he gently took Hinata in his arms from Tsunade.

"There, now hug each other," he ordered making Kushina look at him nervously before turning her head back. The red head smiled softly at Tsunade.

"Kaa-san…it's me, I'm really alive," she muttered while the blonde medic lifted her trembling hand to cup her cheek.

"K-Kushina…." She sniffed, trying to hold back some tears while the female Uzumaki smiled at her, placing a hand over hers. Without wasting another breath, Tsunade wrapped her arms around her step daughter. Her eyes were closed as drops of pearly liquids cascaded down her cheeks.

"K-Kaa-san….too tight," Kushina muttered, her cheeks red in embarrassment as she hugged her step mother back.

"Yo-You're really alive!" Tsunade exclaimed, her head resting on the godaime hokage's shoulder as she sifted her hands through her adoptive daughter's long red hair.

"Of course I am…I would never leave you all," Kushina mumbled with a smile, her eyes half-lidded in content. Tsunade leaned back quickly to again stare at her face; the sanin bit her lower lip as she tried to hold back hears.

"Y-You….You r-really are…." She couldn't complete as a choked sob escaped her lips while Kushina just smiled at her shyly, surprising Mikoto and Jiraiya since that was something they rarely saw on the fiery Uzumaki's face.

'_Wow…she never ceases to amaze me with her beauty….'_ Even Jiraiya had to admit, Kushina was someone even a pervert could swoon over just by staring at her face. Naruto sure was a lucky bastard!

The red head however, hugged Tsunade gently as she comforted her mother.

"There there….easy there Kaa-san, you don't need to cry. I'm here now," she whispered soothingly while Naruto smiled at the scene, his heart swelling with joy. Turning his head, he noticed Shizune standing there with a teary smile on her face.

Walking towards her, he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, gently bringing her towards the hugging duo.

"Hey….you're forgetting someone," Naruto said with teasing smile as he tapped on Tsunade's shoulder. Kushina's smile widened upon noticing Shizune staring at her with a smile, the black haired medic's own tears falling off her chin.

"Ah….Shizune-chan," Kushina whispered as she walked forward to take her in a tender hug. Shizune hugged her back tightly, choked sobs escaping her lips.

"N-Nee-chan…." Her muffled voice came while a lone tear slipped down Kushina's cheeks, it warmed her heart that they cared for her so much.

Tsunade had a bright smile on her face as she wiped her tears. Walking towards Naruto, she grinned widely, pinching his whiskered cheeks playfully.

"Ow…Kaa-chan, they are sensitive'ttebayo," he muttered, now nursing his slightly bruised cheek with a pout while Tsunade draped an arm over his shoulder.

"So this was your surprise huh? You brat!" she exclaimed, rubbing her fist over his head making him complain while Jiraiya stared at the scene with a soft smile on her face.

'_Honestly, this is the happiest I've seen her since Dan died….'_ He thought while Mikoto walked towards him.

"So how was your mission Jiraiya-sama?" she asked with a smile making him grin.

"Smooth Mikoto-chan!" he exclaimed with a nice guy pose making her giggle. Inwardly however, he cautioned himself on not to tell her of this mission, which was to let Tsunade heal an injured Naruto. Kushina had already sent him a message that upon her orders, what happened regarding Itachi was an S-rank secret. They were not supposed to tell this to anybody, especially not to Mikoto.

To her and the village, they had went on a mission to retrieve Tsunade, and that was it.

"Looking at those two, it doesn't look so smooth to me," she pointed out making the toad sanin's grin falter before he suddenly adopted a serious expression.

"Well, to tell you the truth, we had a run in with two of the Akatsuki members along with Orochimaru," he spoke in a low tone making her eyes.

"W-Was Itachi…." Her voice trailed while Jiraiya shook his head.

"No, Itachi wasn't amongst them. We barely escaped….and frankly, it's thanks to Naruto," he spoke while staring at his godson who was begging Tsunade to leave his head.

"Naruto-kun….?" Mikoto asked in surprise as she glanced at the whiskered blonde.

"He fought one of them, an S-rank nin?" she asked with wonder in her voice making the sanin smirk as he nodded, a proud expression on his face.

"Yeah, he faced one of them one on one. And even managed to pull out a draw," he told her, this time making her freeze in shock. Well, she did hear Kushina say Naruto was exceptionally strong for his age, or rather a prodigy of even greater caliber than Itachi. But to take on an S-rank nin, of Akatsuki and manage to pull out a draw?

'_How much strong you really are Naruto-kun?'_ she thought in awe.

"Yosh! Now this calls for a party at Ichiraku ramen!" Kushina pumped her fist making Mikoto sweatdrop while Naruto had stars shining in his eyes as he was in front of the red head in a flash.

"Oh Kaa-sama, you truly are the best!" he spoke with a dreamy grin making Kushina blush, her hand encased in both of his hands while Tsunade chuckled at their antics.

"Okay, we'll have that party tonight. For now, let's just take care of these two first and get done with the important things," Jiraiya spoke making Tsunade nod as she glanced at Hinata and Tayuya. Kushina adopted a serious expression as she gazed at her two unconscious chunin, well….she had decided that Tayuya was fit to start with the chunin rank anyways.

"_I'll explain later Kaa-san,"_ she whipped her head to notice Naruto smiling at her making her smile back as she sneakily held his right hand, a look of longing in her eyes. Leaning in, he gently whispered in her ears.

"You're looking gorgeous Ku-shi-na-chan," his voice sensual making her blush furiously as she fidgeted in her position, her inner regions getting wet at that. It had been a week since they had any 'activity'.

"_D-Don't do that Naru-kun…Tsunade-kaa-san is still here, we have to be careful until we tell her," _she spoke through the Uzushio seal making him grin lightly.

"_But I like teasing you like this, it's adventurous!"_ he exclaimed making her sigh as she smiled at him, that loving look in her eyes whenever she stared at him.

"Oi, c'mon you two love birds, or else Tsunade-sama might get suspicious," the two instantly jumped apart to see Mikoto giggling quietly at their expense.

"Mikoto-chan!" Kushina exclaimed with a huff while Naruto smiled at seeing the Uchiha. Walking towards her, he gently hugged her, surprising both Kushina and her.

"I'm glad to see you all healed up Mikoto-chan," he spoke with a warm smile while the slightest shade of pink adorned Mikoto's cheeks whereas Kushina had a pout on her face, well…she was possessive after all.

"Ah, it's good to see you too Naruto-kun," Mikoto uttered with a smile as she hugged him back.

"Alright! That's enough, let's just go!" Kushina exclaimed as she pushed herself in between the two, pulling on Naruto's arm to get going.

"Why Kushi-chan, jealous?" Mikoto teased, winking at Naruto. Kushina however adopted a dark shade of red as she whipped around.

"W-Who's jealous dattebane? I'm not! Let's just go, we can't be standing here all day now!" she verbalized making Naruto, Mikoto and Ayumi snicker at her expense.

"Oi! Let's get going you guys!" the trio turned their heads upon Jiraiya's voice to see Tsunade, Shizune and him already on the move.

**Later: Konoha: Around 9 PM: Ichiraku Ramen Stand**

"The usual oji-san!" both Kushina and Naruto exclaimed at the same time. The duo looked at each other before grinning sheepishly. Sitting beside them were Tsunade, Jiraiya, Mikoto and Shizune.

"Coming right up!" Teuchi's voice came from the back while Ayame, who was ecstatic to see Naruto again, took the orders of others.

"Oh, where are those four Kaa-san?" Naruto asked in curiosity, he was dying to meet the fire queens, especially Anko. Kushina however gave him an apologetic smile.

"Well, Anko and Hana just left today on an A-rank mission. Kurenai too is out on a solo B-rank mission. They would return in a day or two though," the hokage replied, having used a shadow clone who was handling the 'paperwork' right now.

"Ah, I remember those four little brats. The fourth one, it was Yugao right?" Tsunade asked with a smile, sitting on the other side of Naruto making Kushina nod with a smile.

"Hai, currently she's on patrol duty around the west gate," this made Naruto's smile drop a bit, he really wanted to see her.

'_Oh well, I'll catch up with her later tonight,'_ he thought with a nod. The blonde was currently dressed in civilian clothes. Shifting his gaze, he blushed lightly upon noticing how beautiful Kushina was looking in her purple kimono with pink sakura petals on it. And the red lipstick complimented her hair beautifully. Really, even without the makeup, her serene beauty was to marvel at every time.

'_Can't ignore Mikoto-chan too,'_ he thought before shifting his eyes towards the other side, where Mikoto was conversing with Shizune with Jiraiya strangely being quiet. Mikoto too, having a dark blue lip stick with a red kimono-light pink roses printed on it—was looking gorgeous. He had to say that the eye liner and mascara was really suiting her, her curled and thick eyelashes pulling him in.

Noticing him staring at her, Mikoto winked at Naruto making the blonde blush as he averted his gaze.

'_Damn it! Way to go and embarrass myself!'_ he thought while Ayumi chuckled in amusement, he really was cute.

They were currently celebrating Tsunade's return with Kushina having another reason for it- her 'Naru-kun's' recovery! She was pleasantly surprised to see him act all normal, his goofy self. Frankly, Kushina was expecting for Naruto to be a bit emotionally unstable after what had happened with Itachi. But here he was, grinning like crazy and enjoying himself.

Just after watching him smile at her, having him grin at her, all her worries were flushed away instantly. She knew that he was her Naruto, and that the blonde hadn't changed one bit. He was still the goofy and sexy prankmaster who she loved unconditionally.

However, there were other things for her to worry about. Jiraiya had briefly informed her about their face-off against Orochimaru and Akatsuki. He hadn't told her much, just that they had to face them and that they were able to escape, thanks to Naruto's idea. She also had to explain to Tsunade about how she was alive. Though, to her relief, Jiraiya had already filled in Tsunade about the history between Itachi and Naruto, the jinchuriki's Rinnegan and all.

There were many things to talk about, many questions to be answered, many problems to be solved, but what the hell! She intended to enjoy this moment to its fullest!

"Here it is, the usual!" Teuchi spoke as he brought in several bowls along with Ayame to set them in front of Kushina and Naruto.

"Oh Kami…." Naruto whispered as he inhaled the heavenly scent of his Miso ramen with Kushina doing the same with her Salt ramen. Tsunade just chuckled as she gazed at the ramen obsessed duo.

"Itadakimasu!"

'_Really…he's just like her,'_ the slug sanin thought as she smiled at them fondly. Tsunade, noticing something strange, turned her head when her eyes widened in realization.

'_That's right, he's __awfully quiet__,'_ she thought while staring at Jiraiya's thoughtful looking face.

"So, what perverted fantasies is your mind coming up with right now?" Tsunade asked with a teasing grin, effectively snapping the toad sanin out of his trance-like state as he chuckled at her sheepishly.

"Nothing….just thinking about some things," he answered making her nod with a solemn expression on her face. She knew what he was probably thinking, that they had too much on their plates anyway. A mischievous smile graced her lips as she turned to Teuchi.

"Oi Teuchi! Bring some sake will ya? Oh…wait! Bring the one made from Omachi rice!" she cheered making Jiraiya and Shizune look at her with suspicious eyes while Naruto and Kushina were engrossed in eating their ramen.

"Coming u-"

"Wait, just bring the Amazake," Jiraiya intervened making Tsunade turn to him.

"Oh c'mon! That's doesn't even affect you, it's a low alcohol sake!" the slug sanin exclaimed with a sigh when Shizune spoke.

"We are not going to take any chances, especially when Naruto-kun is with you. Kami knows what I had to witness the last time you two were drunk!" Shizune exclaimed with a sigh making Tsunade stiffen at that as she glanced back to see Kushina talking with Naruto, both of them lost in their own world as they devoured the bowls in front of them.

"Oi Shizune, keep it down will ya? We don't want Kushina t-"

"Naruto got drunk with Tsunade-sama?" Mikoto exclaimed in shock as silence ensued in the stand while the slug sanin began to sweat bullets. Jiraiya was whistling innocently while Shizune began to laugh nervously.

"What?" Tsunade turned to see Kushina glaring at her as she too began to laugh nervously while Naruto pretended to play innocent as he just kept eating his ramen.

"Ahehe…you see Kushina, it was ju-"

"How can you be so irresponsible'ttebane?" Kushina exclaimed with a frown making Tsunade lower her head while Teuchi placed Shizune and Mikoto's orders in front of them. Tsunade's eyebrows however began to twitch when she heard Jiraiya quietly snickering to himself.

'_Just you wait you perverted bastard!'_

"I'm talking to you Kaa-san! You can't have Naru-kun drinking like that! He's just twelve years old!" the red head argued with a frown while Naruto just kept eating his ramen.

"Well, he does look like he's eighteen," Tsunade pointed out sheepishly.

"That's beside the point dattebane!" Kushina retorted making the sanin flinch while Naruto practically had his face in his bowl, furiously eating away his ramen, wanting to avoid his mother, as well as his lover's wrath.

"And you Naru-kun!" The jinchuriki jerked back as Mikoto giggled lightly at his nervous expression.

"U-Um…you see Kaa-san, that time I was trying to learn the drunken fist so I just borrowed some sake from her!" he quickly blurted out as the angry expression on Kushina's face was quickly replaced by confusion.

"Drunken Fist?" the female Uzumaki asked making him nod with a grin while Tsunade breathed out a sigh of relief.

'_Way to go Naru-chan, you sure are a prankster,'_ Tsunade thought as Ayame set down her and Jiraiya's bowls.

"Yeah! You see Kaa-san, I think I have some hidden talent when it comes to drunken boxing!" Naruto lied smoothly making Kushina smile brightly at him.

"Really? That's great Naru-kun!" Jiraiya shook his head at the mother-son antics.

'_Really Kushina, you're still so naïve,'_ he thought before slurping up some ramen.

"So Naruto-kun, Kushina told me that you're really strong? Wanna spar some time?" Mikoto asked with a teasing smile as the blonde turned towards her.

"You bet I am! And sure, I'll beat you," he uttered with a challenging smile while Kushina was surprised at his proclamation. Earlier he avoided any spar with her, she knew that he was afraid to face a kage level kunoichi like her. He used to avoid training with her, well she did beat him pretty badly in their training from time to time.

'_But…how did he get so confident all of a sudden?'_ she thought while Mikoto smirked back at him.

"Oh really, well we'll see that in a few days. I'll fight you when you're at your best, you should rest for a while now," she spoke making him nod as he smiled at her before turning back to his ramen.

'_Heh…the brat has grown. I guess that exposure to those Akatsuki members had a deep effect on him,'_ Jiraiya thought with a smirk.

"Well, I'm sure Naru-chan is going to be a tough opponent!" Tsunade cheered while slinging an arm over her fellow blonde's shoulder making him chuckle. Kushina smiled as she watched Naruto, his smile, the look in his eyes.

'_He really….has grown,'_ she thought when she felt something, her cheeks being tinted a light shade of pink. She turned to Naruto with a surprised look on her face to see him talking with Tsunade.

'_W-What is he….h-his hand….'_ the red head thought, feeling Naruto's hand massage her thighs over her purple kimono. She lowered her head in an attempt to hide her blush as she grabbed Naruto's hand gently, trying to pry off his hand. The blonde however didn't budge as he continued to rub her thighs. Kushina's breathing began to go a little heavy as she sat there, her head lowered while she clenched her hands into fists.

His hand, it felt so good, she really was dying for his touch. She wanted him, to touch her, to explore her body, to be inside her. Kushina closed her eyes as her nether region began to get wet.

'_Stop it Naru-kun….'_ She thought when he started to rub her bare thighs through the slit of her kimono, the blonde working under the counter. Kushina bit back a moan…

'_It...it feels….it feels so good…'_ she thought, her head lowered as she again, in a poor attempt to stop him, put her hand over his. Naruto however continued to talk with Tsunade on the other side while she tried to control herself. She was getting extremely horny now, and he had just touched her thighs only!

'_But his touch….it's so….'_ She mused, her soft skin being rubbed over by his masculine hand.

"_Enjoying yourself Kushi-chan?" _Kushina's eyes widened upon hearing Naruto's sultry voice. Bringing her trembling left hand upto her neck, she activated the Uzushio seal with a shaky command of 'Kai.'

"_N-Naru-kun….d-don't do it….Kaa-san is here'ttebane!"_ she exclaimed when his hand began to rub her inner thighs making her moan inaudibly.

"_Now why should I stop? It's been a while since we did it…."_ Naruto inwardly spoke teasingly while Ayumi was cheering him on.

"_That's my foxy pevert! Show her what you've learned from me!" _the female bijuu exclaimed with a perverse grin.

Kushina's grip on his hand tightened as he began to rub her pussy through her panties.

"_Ahhh….N-Narutooo….d-don't__,__"_ her breathing was coming in light pants now as he rubbed her panties, which were surprisingly soaking wet now.

"_Wow…you are this wet already,"_ his surprised voice came over the telepathic link while Kushina involuntarily parted her thighs, giving his hand more space to work in.

"_E-Ero...b__aka…."_ she inwardly mumbled when he inserted a finger into her pussy lips through her panties making her bite her lower lip harder as she held back her moans.

"_How does it feel Ku-shi-chan?"_ he worded sensually, turning her on even more as her body began to shake from the uncontrollable hormones.

"_I-It's…..w-wonderful….."_ she spoke through the link while he continued to rub her.

"_Should I stop now? They might catch us you know,"_ he suddenly spoke as the blonde began to pull his hand back when her soft hand held it, pulling him back in.

"_N-No….k-keep doing it…."_ Kushina muttered in the link with a scarlet blush on her face, her breathing heavy while Naruto inwardly grinned, currently eating ramen with his left hand holding the chopsticks. Meanwhile, Ayumi had a proud smile on her face as she watched Naruto seduce Kushina like that. Whenever the her blonde lover was free, she would give him lessons about what she dubbed as 'Sex and Seduction'. And here was her Naruto, pulling it off like a pro.

Ayumi however smiled while shaking her head as she saw Naruto glance at Kushina, herself seeing the female Uzumaki's tomato face as the whiskered blonde continued to rub her insides.

'_Oh Kushina…you're still so naïve, so innocent. But don't worry, my pupil will teach you!'_

**Yeah, lame ending, but don't worry….the fun is just starting! Actually, I wanted to end this chapter after a lime scene between Naruto and Kushina followed by him meeting Yugao during her patrol duty. But oh well, this chapter is already about ****9****K long, so I'll include that in the next chapter. **

**Also, this is going to one of those 'long A/N's', so those who've decided to read it, sit back. **

**First thing, I'm going to **_**explain**_** about Naruto's power level in this fic, which, after his recent fight with Deidara, you guys are confused about. **

**Okay, so some of you guys have said that if he could face a jinchuriki (Roshi during the invasions) and fight two S-rank nins (Mikoto and Mito in Four Corner ****Sealing ****Barrier during Invasions), th****en**** why was he afraid to fight against two S-rank nins like Deidara and Sasori, and that why did he have such difficulty in facing these guys****?**** Some readers have also said that he should've been easily able to take out both Deidara and Sasori, saying that these are amongst the slowest members of Akatsuki being both Deidara and Sasori are primarily long range fighters. So I'm going to explain point by point here.**

**Now, let's come to his performance during the invasions. Roshi, who he faced during the invasions, was under a genjutsu and judging by his behavior, you all could tell that he was just acting like a robot of some sorts, totally under someone's control. And Naruto didn't even fight him much****. W****hen Roshi arrived, he was already on the ground, due to the post Rinnegan ascension circumstances and all. And after he achieved the second level, he did fight Roshi a bit, who was not at his full power and just a mindless drone. So he mainly handled Sasuke and fought Roshi a bit. WHEN Roshi started using the bijuu's chakra, Bee had jumped in and asked Naruto to assist those in the Four Corner Sealing Barrier. So there you go. **

**As to when it comes to Naruto showing amazing speeds, that 'amazing' speed was in comparison to the competition that he was facing, meaning chunin level at best in the form of genins. So that speed, although extremely fast and upto that of a mid-high jounin, is not**** much**** compared to an S-rank nin. Now Deidara and Sasori maybe slow ones, but they are long range fighters, and they know how to handle fast opponents. Just think, Sasuke in manga is fast, extremely fast, and still he had his hands full against Deidara. This just shows that these guys know how to handle fast opponents and keep themselves at distance. The fact they are called 'slow' is in comparison to other members who are just, extremely 'fast'. Ex- Pain's Tendou holding his ground against Naruto in his six tailed form, and we know how fast Naruto is in that state. So there you go, Naruto is fast, extremely fast according to his age which led to everyone being shocked at his speed, but his speed, in general, is of mid-high jounin level.**

**When he fought Mikoto and Mito in the Four Corner Sealing Barrier, he had Kushina with him. Moreover, as pointed by Kushina during that time, Orochi's Edo Tensei had made them like drones without their thought processes. Therefore, their attacks were predictable and easy to dodge. And they were not at their fullest. So Naruto, in a sense, was only assisting Kushina. And if you have doubts, just go read that fight again, you'll know what I mean. I never implied that he's as strong as a****S-rank nin and ****that he ****should've been able to take them down easily. **

**As to why he was afraid to fight Deidara and Sasori, the two Akatsuki members, even if it was not befitting of a hero. It was because- one- he always avoided training sessions with Kushina and that was for a reason. He knew how powerful kage level shinobi are, or rather, how scary his mother is. And two- having been filled up by Jiraiya about how dangerous Akatsuki members are- he was nervous. Also, having endured what happened with Itachi, low on confidence, ****and ****against opponents like Orochimaru****,**** Deidara and Sasori**** (two of whom want to capture and the remaining one who wants to kill you)****….and you say he should've been able to defeat them easily, yeah…..that's seriously pushing it.**

**Last thing, just consider the circumstances under which he fought in the last four or so chapters, and you should be able to understand. **

**In this fic, from the beginning, Naruto easily defeated their opponents until the invasions. And who were those opponents? Sasuke, Lee, Dosu and Gaara. Yeah, so he completely overpowered these**** guys****, while his fight with Lee gave him the workout. But still, just notice that from the beginning he only fought the genins, those of his age. And when he fought the big names- Roshi, Mikoto, Mito, Orochimaru- he always had some help with him. When he fought Deidara here, alone, having just recovered from Sasori's poison, he fought an experienced S-rank ninja, former terrorist bomber and an ex-member of the Blast or something corporation in Iwa, I think he did an amazing job, in standing up for himself, as well as for Tsunade and Hinata. He even helped his group escape, fooling two S-rank ninja and defeating one with his 'sexy jutsu'….that takes guts, determination, level-headed thinking, and not some stupid, blind heroics. -.-**

**He may sound pathetic to you sometimes, like his emotional phase after what happened with Itachi, but he still is Naruto, only slightly different one considering the events that have taken place in this fic so far. People may think that this Naruto is stupid like that of cannon, but I still like this one. He has the same guts and determination, a level headed one with his moments of glorious stupidity in the mix, someone who faces his emotions head on rather than compressing them deep inside, and the one who has the will to stomp on his pride- accept his mistakes- and try to improve on them. Yeah well, he is a bit emotional, and he may not deal with everything with a foxy grin, but he has his loved ones here, and he doesn't hesitate in taking help from them. I agree, he has had his moments of stupidity despite being called genius on several occasions, but I do want to keep him this way- goofy, intelligent, full of emotions, gutsy, tendency to learn from his mistakes, flashes of shocking idiocy (hey he is the number one unpredictable ninja :D) and some slight stubbornness in the mix- that's how I want to portray ****him ****in this fic. :)**

**Also, this is not a god-like fic where he'll be able to defeat S-rank nins this early. Well, after the time-skip, there will be a drastic increase in his strength and ****he ****will be able to fight with standard kage level shinobi toe to toe. But before the timeskip, the max he will be at, without Ayumi's chakra- is elite jounin level. Things will not be always easy for him, things will be difficult for him, well…things are difficult for him, but he will always have his loved ones with him at every step of the way. (Well what's the goddamn huge harem for? XP) They will support him, and he will support them in their difficult times. There will be mind numbing plot twists (those who have read my 'Jinchuriki's Note' will know), his moments of idiocy which I'm sure will make you facepalm (lol), crazy and epic fights, fluffy and heart swelling romance, sweat breaking hot lemons *nosebleed*, heart touching drama, slight touches on philosophical themes, 'LMAO' level humor and a badass plot! **

**Lol, it feels like I'm starting all over again, telling you for what's to come. -.-" But still, the content from here on out will be much better than these 45 chapters, that I assure you. That's because, I believe, I'm confident that I've matured as an author. And others may not agree with me at some points in the future, still, I do hope you enjoy this from now on. As you've probably noticed, the romance has improved as compared to before, where almost every girl 'blushed' at seeing Naruto ****(****lol****)****. So yeah, whenever I read my earlier chapters, I can see the difference in my skills, so I will do my best to make this a truly unique story, something which you guys I hope, would love for years to come. (though that promises a lot of hardwork from my part T_T) lol**

**OKAY! Now I'm done with the ranting! Anyways, the lemons are gonna start from next chapter onwards. So be ready! Lol it's ironic that when we were free to write lemons, I only wrote two for this fic, and when they enforce their rating policy and other authors are deleting their lemons, I want to write more! I mean, I've already written a 5-6K words lemon in my other fic TBD (Naruto & Rangiku) in a chapter which has to be updated next. Yep, I am sorta weird! :D**

**RELATIONSHIPS-**** Now, I think I'd better inform you guys as to which girl (who's in the harem) is how much close (romantically) to Naruto, okay? The hearts are a rough indicator of how much their relationships have progressed. **

**Kushina: She's the closest to him, tying with Ayumi. (9 Hearts out of 10)**

**Ayumi: Yep, she definitely is VERY close to him, being able to ****interact**** with him all the time. (9 Hearts out of 10)**

**Kurenai: (8 Hearts out of 10)**

**Anko: (8 Hearts out of 10)**

**Hana: (7 Hearts out of 10)**

**Yugao: (6 Hearts out of 10)—Don't worry, we'll work on that :)**

**Mikoto: (1 Heart out of 10)- Remember that ****this**** is about being 'romantically' close. Otherwise, she is VERY close to Naruto, but not romantically….not yet :P**

**Tayuya: (2 Hearts out of 10)**

**Hinata: (7 Hearts out of 10)**

**Ino: (3 Hearts out of 10)**

**Kin: (5 Hearts out of 10)**

**Kiyohime: Hmm, it's only one sided right now. Soooo….. (1 Heart)- Nothing has progressed romantically between them.**

**Temari: (5 Hearts out of 10)- Remember that Temari protected him from Roshi during Invasions. :)**

**Mei: (4 Hearts out of 10)**

**Yugito: (3 Hearts out of 10)**

**Samui: (2 Hearts out of 10)**

**Konan: Haven't Met, Enemies-lol (0 Hearts out of 10)**

**Guren: Enemies (0 Hearts out of 10)**

**Oh, the ones having hearts less than 7 are not ready for lemons with Naruto. XP It means they need to spend more time with him, and get to know him better. :D Those with hearts more than 3 (excluding 3) are ready to kiss him (and some lime action)! Lol! **

**I know, the heart thing is pretty lame, but it at least gives you guys to keep track of the large harem and as to who's how much closer to Naruto. So I'll occasionally keep updating it during my A/N's. If you have ****any ****qualms with the 'hearts' (lol, kinda weird) above, then ask it in a PM or ****a ****review.**

**Whoah, long A/N huh? Anyway, that's that I guess. Though the lemons that I'm most probably gonna do in the coming chapters will be- Anko, Kurenai, Yugao, Hana, Kushina and Ayumi**** (see the hearts XD)****. Hinata will get hers after the time skip. **

**So please review, lots of reviews, and thanks for reading and staying with me through ups and downs in this story. I'm really grateful to you guys. So see ya next chapter! :)**

**N6023 **


	46. Moon Flower

**Chapter****46****- Moon Flower**

"_How does it feel Ku-shi-na-chan?"_ he worded sensually, turning her on even more as her body began to shake from the uncontrollable hormones.

"_I-It's…..w-wonderful….."_ she spoke through the link while he continued to rub her.

"_Should I stop now? They might catch us you know,"_ he suddenly spoke as the blonde began to pull his hand back when her soft hand held it, pulling him back in.

"_N-No….k-keep doing it…."_ Kushina muttered in the link with a scarlet blush on her face, her breathing heavy while Naruto inwardly grinned, currently eating ramen with his left hand holding the chopsticks. Meanwhile, Ayumi had a proud smile on her face as she watched Naruto seduce Kushina like that. Whenever her blonde lover was free, she would give him lessons about what she dubbed as 'Sex and Seduction'. And here was her Naruto, pulling it off like a pro.

Ayumi however smiled while shaking her head as she saw Naruto glance at Kushina, herself seeing the female Uzumaki's tomato face as the whiskered blonde continued to rub her insides.

'_Oh Kushina…you're still so naïve, so innocent. But don't worry, my pupil will teach you!'_

**A Few Minutes Later: Konoha's Streets: Midnight**

"Look Naru-kun, the moon is full today!" Kushina pointed out with a bright smile, currently walking beside her lover. The blonde lifted his head to gaze at the glowing heavenly body, a small serene smile tugging his lips.

The duo were currently walking through the secluded streets with Kushina holding on to his right arm tightly, her head resting on his shoulder.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" she asked with a contended sigh escaping her lips. Naruto averted his eyes to stare at her, an amused smile stretching his lips. Leaning in towards her red hair, he sniffed in the heavenly scent, whispering in her ear sensually.

"Not as beautiful as a certain someone," this made the red head jerk her head in surprise, a light blush spreading across her cheeks as she lowered her head- his hot breath sending shivers down her spine.

"B-Baka….." her timid voice barely above a whisper, smiling at the compliment when Naruto untangled his arm from hers before wrapping it around her shoulder. Kushina closed her eyes as she leaned into his chest, a dreamy smile on her face as the duo continued to walk through the streets at leisurely pace.

"So, how's the workload with you being hokage and all?" the whiskered blonde asked in a somewhat lazy voice making her 'hmm' in response.

"It's okay…it can be a little stressful but I just let my shadow clones handle all the paperwork," her soft voice like a melody to him as she snuggled into his chest. Naruto suddenly gained a mischievous glint in his eyes as he grinned slightly.

Kushina squealed lightly in surprise when she felt herself being picked up by the blonde bridal style.

"There….much better!" he exclaimed with his foxy grin making her smile back at him as she nuzzled her cheek into his chest, enjoying the warmth his body was exuding.

"Naru-kun…?" Kushina spoke, her voice unusually timid making him lower his head.

"Yeah?"

"How….How are you feeling?" she asked softly, gazing into his oceanic orbs as she cupped his cheek, her maternal instincts surfacing. Naruto however, instantly knew what she was talking about. He gave her a warm smile, his eyes pouring out his love and appreciation for her caring for his well being so much.

"I'm fine Kaa-san….you don't have to worry, I can handle myself. I'm not a kid anymore after all," he grinned playfully at the last part making her smile at him.

"Still, you will always be my sweet baby," she muttered to herself, tracing her fingers over his whiskers.

"And your lover too Kushina-chan," he mumbled back, staring forward with a smile making her eyes widen in surprise that he had heard her.

"Kaa-san, should we tell the villagers about our relationship?" he asked in a sudden serious tone making her sigh.

"I don't think we should, we should just tell them that we are seeing each other….and that's it. They will understand seeing as we two are the last of the Uzumaki clan," Kushina answered making him nod with a smile. Well at least one part of their relationship they wouldn't have to hide.

"Which means the fact that you married Tou-san has to stay hidden right?" the jinchuriki asked making her nod, her face gaining a small frown at the mention of Minato.

"I heard from Jiraiya about you facing off against an Akatsuki member Deidara all by yourself," she started after an awkward silence making him nod with a smile.

"Yeah, but it was a really tough battle. You wouldn't believe me if I tell you as to how I managed to pull out a draw," Naruto muttered with mirth in his voice while Ayumi chuckled at the memory. Kushina tilted her head cutely, a curious expression on her face.

"How?"

"Well let's just say that you should really declare Oroike no jutsu as an S-rank one," the grin on his face couldn't have been wider while Kushina' eyes widened to the size of dinner plates in mind boggling surprise.

"Oh don't tell me'ttebane...," she whispered in wonder making him nod with his patented foxy grin.

"Y-You actually had the guts to pull it off in a life threatening situation?!" The godaime hokage was shocked at her lover's guts, or his another attempt to look like an idiot. Naruto however scratched the back of his head in embarrassment while Ayumi was grinning proudly since it was her idea in the first place.

"Ahehe...well let's just say that my mind wasn't exactly in the best of shape," the blonde muttered with a light chuckle.

_"HEY!"_ He somewhat flinched at Ayumi's cry.

_"Mah Ayumi-chan! I was only joking,"_ Naruto muttered inwardly making her 'hmph'.

_"You're so ungrateful! I'm __not gonna talk to you!"_ She exclaimed before cutting the link making him sweatdrop.

_'What the...hell? I was only joking,' _he thought before noticing Kushina staring at his face with a loving smile.

"Something on my face Kushi-chan?" Naruto asked with a smirk making her shake her head lightly, a small blush adorning her smooth cheeks.

"Ah, here we are," he spoke, now looking at their apartment which they had bought a month ago. Walking up the outer stairs leading to the balcony, he formed a sealless shadow clone. The clone put his hand on the wooden polished door, channeling some chakra through the it.

Kushina just stared at him with a smile, her arm wrapped around his neck loosely as a click was heard from the other side. Nodding slightly to himself, the clone turned the knob, opening the door before dispelling himself.

"Home sweet home!" He exclaimed excitedly in a low tone, now entering the apartment while Kushina giggled fondly at him. Walking slowly though the short corridor, the duo entered the spacious living hall. Kushina however was surprised upon finding his eyes blood red with black slits.

_'He must be using Ayumi's chakra to see through the darkness,' _she mused, the moonlight entering through the windows which was dimly lighting the room giving her a sense of peacefulness.

"Ah! Man all that ramen really hit the spot! I'm feeling lazy!" Naruto spoke as he plopped down on the couch with a jerk, Kushina still in his arms as she laughed lightly.

"Wow...never thought I'd see Uzumaki Naruto acting lazy," she muttered making him chuckle.

"What can he say? His mother just has that effect on him, he doesn't need to be on his guard when he's around her," the blonde uttered, his eyes closed with his head tilting backwards, being supported by the couch's top edge.

Kushina smiled warmly as she raised her hand to cup his cheek softly.

"I thought I'd lost you," she mumbled as his eyes snapped open, the moonlight illuminating her face, giving it a heavenly glow. Naruto lowered his head to gaze into her eyes which were getting glossy now.

Holding her tight, he got off the sofa, struggling a bit before entering the bedroom. Kushina continued to gaze at him as Naruto gently placed her on the bed. Not saying anything, he laid on her before hugging her form, his nose nuzzled into her neck while Kushina blushed lightly, her sensitive and voluptuous assets pressed flush against his muscled torso.

"I will never leave you...that's the promise of a lifetime," he mumbled making her smile as she rubbed his scalp tenderly, her eyelids getting wet.

"I'm sorry that I worried you but...I just...," he paused, taking a deep breath while Kushina listened to him intently.

"It's just that I never expected for something like this to happen. I really looked upto him, he was the big brother I always wanted," his voice held so much sadness while Kushina continued to rub his scalp softly as she wrapped her legs around his, providing him as much comfort as she could.

"I thought he was the only one who truly understood my pain. And then, all of a sudden, it was like...I' was forced to wake up from a dream. Just like that...he comes and says that he was under control, and all of a sudden I'm expected to just get over it like its nothing," he paused, holding her tightly while Kushina held a soft look in her violet orbs, a look of compassion and understanding.

"Nar-"

"I used to do that. When the villagers beat me, when they glared at me, when they ignored me, I just got over it quickly and did not think much about it. I always motivated myself, that someday I'll prove all of them wrong. I just grinned on the outside, I prank'ed without a care in the world and I put a fake smile for the world to see. But this time, I couldn't. I tried to get over it, I tried to just laugh it away, but I couldn't. It kept eating me from the inside," Kushina kept on listening to him intently, not daring to interrupt him as Naruto inhaled her scent, nuzzling his nose in her neck, his eyes closed.

"I guess, I finally understand Sasuke's pain," the blonde spoke while her eyes opened in surprise.

"Though not to his extent, but I now know the pain of your bonds being severed in an instant...it really is unbearable. I now know how Mikoto-chan must be feeling. I now know how it must have affected Kurenai-chan when she lost her father during Ayumi's attack all those years ago. I now know how Anko-chan must've felt to have her father figure like Orochimaru betray her, throwing her like some garbage in an instant. I now know how Orochimaru must've felt when he lost his parents. I now know...why Ero-sennin could never understand his teammate's pain, it was because he is an orphan, just like I was. I can say, that I understand Orochimaru and Sasuke at some level," Naruto uttered, releasing a shaky breath into Kushina's neck.

_'I know how it feels too. After all, I almost lost you twelve years ago Naru-kun,'_ the red head thought, clutching him tightly to her.

Naruto smiled lightly as he lifted his head to stare into her eyes which were reflecting warmth and love.

"But you know what Kaa-san, I'll show them," he spoke resolutely, his orbs filled with determination while Kushina tilted her head lightly in confusion.

"Show them what?"

"I'll show them that that pain of your bonds being destroyed can be overcome...by love. I have all of you, my friends. I finally have other people who care for me...I have you Kaa-san, right?" he chuckled lightly making her smile as she kissed him on the forehead, her lips lingering on his skin.

"Of course sweetie. I'll be always there for you, no matter what," she uttered softly as he grinned lightly.

"We'll always be there for each other, no matter what. Promise?" he asked, his grin fading to a playful smirk as the blonde held up his pinky.

Kushina giggled at his antics as she wrapped her own finger around his, nodding at him with a smile.

"Yup, it's a promise," she whispered, cool night breeze coming through the window as it circulated in the room, much to their comfort.

Naruto's smile however instantly vanished when he realized something.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" he exclaimed in a low voice. Just as Kushina was about to ask, her eyes widened in surprise when the blonde pressed his lips to her gently.

She slowly closed her eyes, kissing him back as the red head melted into the kiss. Naruto was cupping her cheeks tenderly as she rubbed his scalp with her nimble fingers, she knew he loved it everytime.

Leaning back, he opened his eyes while Kushina still had her eyes closed as she licked her lips, savoring the kiss. This was their first kiss in a whole week, it felt as if years had passed.

_'I just can't resist it...I can never have enough of him,'_ she pondered, slowly opening her eyes as she again started to lean in, parting her pink supple lips. Her eyes were half-lidded, barely open as her lower lip quivered in hunger, wanting to taste those lips she was addicted to.

Kushina however was surprised when she felt a finger pressed gently against her lips as she opened her eyes to see Naruto smiling at her warmly.

"Wait, I want to...," he trailed, breathing in deeply as he resisted the urge to smash his lips against hers, now watching that irresistible expression of hers- the desire and need in her eyes, her soft and velvety lips, her hot breath; it was turning him on like crazy.

_'Control yourself Naruto...control yourself...I have to tell her right now...damn, she's so irresistible...her pink lips are so soft...kuso...'_ releasing a shuddering breath, his eyes closed; the blonde was about to speak when his breathing hitched in his throat.

Kushina ran her tongue over his finger, her right hand gently holding his wrist while her hot breath tickled the wet skin of his index digit.

Trying to ignore the erotic sight of her slowly licking his finger, he continued.

"I...Kushi...na...I...h-hey wait...l-listen...," but she won't budge. The red head ignored his weak calls as she took in the tip of his index finger in her mouth, wrapping her soft tongue around it as she sucked on it gently.

Naruto found himself losing control at the erotic display as he took deep breaths, trying to ignore her soft moans and the slurping noises. He could bet she was doing this on purpose!

_'Oh my Kami...I never knew Kushina could be this erotic. She's seducing my foxy-kun like a pro!'_ Ayumi thought in shock as she watched Kushina's lustful expression through Naruto, not believing her eyes.

_'This never happened with Minato. She was never the one to be so naughty, and look at her now, craving him like that. Oh Kushina, I'm so proud of you! Both of you are on the right track!'_ the female bijuu thought in glee, herself getting turned on by Naruto's groans.

"Hey...s-stop...l-let me speak first...," Naruto tried in vain but under her skillful tongue, the blonde found himself helpless as he groaned lightly.

"Oh...Nha...rhusho...," Kushina moaned, her lower regions dripping with her love juice as she suckled hungrily on his finger. His groans were a melodic aphrodisiac to her, his weakening resolve pushing her on as she wrapped her legs around his lower frame- locking him in.

"Oh...K-Kushina..." he whispered huskily as she continued to moan erotically.

Gently pulling his finger away from her lips, he watched her in mild amusement as she reluctantly let it go. She opened her eyes, hazy violet meeting oceanic blue as they stared at each other.

"N-Not anymore...I can't wait anymore...Naruto," she whispered sensually, her lower lip trembling slightly in need as she rubbed her thighs together, her perky nipples poking her kimono while her skin was burning hot with desire.

Leaning in towards her, Naruto gazed back at her with a small smile as he grazed her cheek lightly with the back of his hand. Kushina's skin tingled with pleasure as she shivered in anticipation.

"Naughty Kaa-san, seducing her son like that...," he whispered, his lips just an inch away from hers as she blushed slightly, getting more turned on by the statement.

"D-Don't say su-"

Naruto didn't let her finish as he suddenly took her lips in a wild kiss. Kushina immediately began kissing him back feverishly, her lips mashing into his as they kissed wildly, hungrily, both of them moaning and groaning in pleasure. She wrapped her arms around his head, clutching his spiky locks as she pulled him closer. The red head arched her back, pushing her voluptuous breasts into his chest, grinding them against his muscled torso as sparks of pleasure traveled through her hardened nipples.

Both of them could feel the heat radiating off their lips, the warm wetness, the velvety skin as they tried to melt their lips into each other. Their eyes were closed, her hands travelling up and down his body while both of them moaned and groaned in need, further increasing the heat.

Naruto was surprised when she opened her lips first, her tongue coming out like a starving prey as she began to fervently lick his lips in between their kiss. He groaned throatily when she started to nibble on his lower lip, sucking on it furiously as his eyes threatened to roll back into his head.

_'Oh Kami...Kaa-san...' _such passion...such wildness...it was driving him crazy.

He opened his lips and not a second later, her tongue attacked his insides without any restraints, exploring every warm inch of his cavern as the blonde groaned in pleasure.

_'Fuck...so HOT!' _Ayumi, not so surprisingly was blown back with a nosebleed in his mindscape.

Kushina's hands were sifting through his blonde locks as she grinded her body against him. Pulling his tongue out with hers, their soft appendages dueled with each other hungrily.

"Hah...hmmm...hahhhh," their warm saliva dripped down their tongues as the duo continued to make out- their tongues exposed to open air.

Grinding her body against his, Kushina moaned into the kiss when his hardened member rubbed against her pelvis- a specific extremely sensitive part.

This gave the blonde a chance to push back her tongue as he invaded her mouth, tasting her insides insatiably while Kushina tightened her arms around his neck, pulling him as close to her as possible.

Warm streams of saliva dripped down their chin in this wet make out session, showing each other as to how dearly they had missed each other during the last week.

_'Oh Naruto...'_ Kushina thought fondly as she traced her fingers over his scalp, her heart beating wildly due to her desire as well as the impeccable joy of having him in her arms. The wild and heated make out session soon turned into a slow, sensual, loving and a chaste kiss as they just traced their hands around each other's bodies.

Finally running out of oxygen, even with their enhanced lung capacities due to being shinobi, Naruto leaned back ever so slowly. Both of them were panting now, their lower lips still touching along with their noses touched while their eyes were half-lidded.

Naruto's hands found hers as they intertwined their fingers.

"I...love you..." he panted as her swollen lips curled upwards.

"I l-love...you too," she whispered, pecking him lightly while her long red hair were sprawled on the bed beneath her. Lifting his hand, he wiped the thin trail of saliva from her chin via the sleeve of his shirt.

Kushina smiled at the gesture as she too wiped his chin with the sleeve of her kimono.

"Hmm...you smell really good," he uttered as her cheeks turned a light shade of pink, his nose nuzzled into her neck.

"B-Baka'ttebane..." she muttered making him chuckle at hearing her verbal tick.

Kushina however gasped when he began to place butterfly kisses on her smooth neck while she tilted her head back to give him more access.

"I will mark you as mine Kaa-san..." he grinned lightly against her skin before biting slightly on it.

"Ah...Narutooo..." she moaned as he nipped on her skin with his lower lip, suckling and chewing on it gently while Kushina squirmed under his ministrations.

"N-Naruto...k-keep doing it...," she moaned, biting her index finger as he gave her a hickey.

"There..." he declared before kissing the spot lightly making her giggle a bit.

Kushina smiled lightly as she touched the small hickey on her side neck.

_'His mark...Naru-koi's mark, I'm his now...my baby...,'_ she thought fondly before gaining a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Whoa...ahh!" the blonde exclaimed in surprise when she flipped him over easily, showing why she was a kage level kunoichi.

Naruto winced, feeling extreme pain as Kushina sat on him with a sly grin.

"Hah, now it's my tu...Naruto?" she asked in concern upon seeing his pained expression as the blonde laid under her with Kushina sitting on his stomach.

"Aheh...i-it's nothing," he verbalized with a pained smile.

_"Be careful Naruto-kun, your injuries are still fresh. And with your body not being able to currently handle much of my chakra, it may take a day or two to heal you," _came Ayumi's concerned voice.

Kushina however narrowed her eyes upon seeing his pained expression.

"K-Kaa-san..." he stammered as she gently began to unbutton his shirt, a serious expression on her face.

Naruto averted his gaze as he heard her gasp lightly.

Kushina gently traced her right hand over his bandaged upper body, her eyes getting glossy.

"H-How did this happen?" she asked in concern making him sigh.

"Well, I did fight one on one against an S-rank criminal, I was lucky to even manage out a draw," he uttered seriously while she just stayed quiet. Snaking his hands to hold hers, he gently pulled her over him to grin lightly.

"There's something I wanted to say...," he murmured, their faces inches apart as she stared at him in confusion.

Parting a bang to behind her ear, the blonde kissed her cute nose lightly, a warm smile on his face.

"Arigatou...Kushina..." her eyes widened as he chuckled at her.

"For...what?" she questioned as he shifted his gaze to outside the window, staring at the full moon with a serene expression on his face.

Kushina watched him with a small smile as she cupped his cheeks tenderly.

_'He looks so happy, so at peace. I'm glad you haven't changed...Naruto.'_

"It was because of you that I'm alive today," the blonde started, catching her attention as he kept staring at the moon.

"During the whole month, I kept trying to avoid some of your training, where you just beat me into a bloody pulp and asked me to dodge your attacks. Even though I didn't show it on the outside, I was a little bit...angry with you," he confessed, not watching her face as she gasped inaudibly in surprise.

_'He was...angry at me?'_ Kushina thought in surprise, not liking this revelation in the least, but still...she continued to listen.

"There were times I was down, times when I was really angry with you. I was like- isn't it enough that villagers beat me in the past, that Sakura-chan used to beat me...and now my own mother? Did people just kept finding excuses to shit on me?"

"Naruto no...it was nothing like that, you know how much I love you. I would neve-"

"I know Kaa-san..." he turned his eyes to gaze back at her, a timid sort of smile on his face as he wiped a stray tear off her cheek.

"I was immature back then, not being able to see what was right...in front of me, and wrong...in front me," the jinchuriki muttered with sad look in his eyes while Kushina shook her head in denial.

"No, you were no-"

"I knew how much it hurt you to beat me like that, every punch on me was like a stab to your own heart. Every drop of my blood led to a drop of your own tear...now I understand, how much it hurt you," he paused while she had her eyes widened in surprise. Naruto smiled as he played with the tresses of her hair.

"I'm sorry for not understanding you earlier. But now I see that you were just aiming for what was best for me, for me to survive against Akatsuki. It was because of your harsh training that I could stand against an enemy like Deidara. You know, even he asked me as to who my trainer was. Right then I knew, how right you were. Just like a parent, you were going for what was best for me, and just like a child, I couldn't understand my parent. You were doing what a father would've done, and then later, fussing all over my injured self, just like a mother. You were...are playing both the role of a father and mother. You try your best to be my mom, my dad, my sister, my best friend and...most of all, you are my lover. So many responsibilities, with no one to support you, even with me sometimes not being with you, you never wavered. No parent is ideal of course, but you tried your best to shower me with love, even protecting me from civilian girls who flirted with me. Hehe, it was funny, but actually heart-warming to see you so possessive of me, both as my mother and lover. In just a month, you made me feel what's it like to have parents. I think...I think you're an amazing person Kushina-chan," he spoke with sincerity, staring at the shocked look in her eyes with a sheepish smile.

Kushina was currently biting her lower lip, tears freely flowing down her cheeks as he wiped them with his hands.

"Thank you...for letting me be your son," a choked sob escaped her lips as she closed her eyes while he continued to smile at her, knowing that those were tears of happiness.

"My baby!" she exclaimed before engulfing him in a protective hug, her arms around his head which was pushed into her cleavage. More sobs escaped her lips as she clutched him tightly to her.

Parents usually told their children that they were proud of them, but for their own children to declare that they were proud of them- it was a heavenly feeling, like the reason for their living, for them being alive was successful. Kushina couldn't describe it, but she felt like the happiest being alive on the planet.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she repeatedly exclaimed while his head was pressed into her cleavage, clutching her object of affection tightly, not wanting to let him go...ever.

"Thank you...for letting me being your mother sweetheart," she whispered with a 'sniff' when her eyes opened wide in surprise, a dark blush spreading across her cheeks.

"Na-Naruto..." she spoke softly, a pleasurable sigh escaping her lips as he kneaded her voluptuous breasts through her kimono. The blonde had a mischievous grin on his face as he sniffed in the scent from her cleavage, getting intoxicated by it.

"My...I can feel your hard nipples Kushi-chan, why so turned on?" he asked slyly as she moaned when his thumb grazed against her nipples. It had been a week since he had tended to her, since he drank her milk, and they had started to hurt since the past couple of days. Her breasts were really sensitive right now.

"Naru...to..." she couldn't say anything as he continued to play with her tits, before parting the edges of her kimono to reveal her voluptuous mounds. Kushina supported herself on her elbows as he started to grope her double D cups, a thirsty look on his face.

"Hah...oh Nar-uto...s-suck them...please," she moaned loudly making him smirk.

"Time for my midnight snack..." he mumbled before licking her right nipple, sucking on them a bit roughly while her moans got even louder, reverberating through the room.

"Ohh...Naruuuu..." her moans were so sweet, so melodic as well as lustful as he drank her sprays of baby milk, sucking on them eagerly while playing with her other tit with his hands. He deliberately continued to make lewd noises, turning on Kushina even more as she struggled to support herself.

_'Now for the next one...'_

Leaving her nipple with an audible pop, he turned to her left nipple, sucking and biting on it roughly while Kushina's loud moans could be heard throughout the apartment.

"Yesss...h-harder...ahh Naru-koiiii...so gooood!" she hung her head, her bangs covering her face as her body shook in an orgasm while Naruto stopped, his eyes wide.

"Did you just...cum?" he asked, slipping his head out from in between her breasts while she nodded lightly, still panting. She couldn't help herself, it had felt so good!

The blonde however grinned foxily as he licked his lips.

"It was delicious!" he exclaimed while she giggled lightly. Releasing a dreamy sigh, she fell to his side. Naruto stared at her, parting a strand of hair out of her eye as she smiled at him.

"I guess we can't do it tonight huh?" a cute pout on her face, her cheeks a light shade of red while he blinked in confusion.

"Do what?" her blush darkened as the redhead averted her gaze.

"W-Well...you know, making love...," her cheeks now tomato red when he burst out laughing. Kushina glared at him playfully as she puffed her cheeks with a pout.

"Hahaha...oh K-Kushina...you're s-still so shy!" she averted her gaze, an annoyed look on her face while he snickered to himself.

POOF!

"That's right, you're so naïve Kushina," Ayumi's grinning face from other side of Naruto, her chin resting on his shoulder as she waved at her ex-jinchuriki.

Kushina gasped upon seeing Ayumi's grinning face as she glared at the bijuu.

"It's your damn fault! You're the one who spoiled my Naruto!" she exclaimed, now reaching for her neck when Ayumi leaned back to her side.

"Hey whoa...!" Naruto spoke when Kushina got over him as she tried to reach for Ayumi's neck.

"A-Ah...Itai Kai-san!" Naruto yelled while Kushina kept trying to reach for Ayumi's neck, wanting to strangle the bijuu.

A mischievous grin took birth on Ayumi's face when...

"Mwaaaa!" Kushina yelled in pain...

WHAM!

"ITAAAAIIII!" elbowing Naruto in the gut on impulse as he screamed comically in pain while Kushina tried to free her index and middle finger which Ayumi had bitten.

"Aaah!" the bijuu exhaled as she let Kushina's hand go.

Both Uzumaki continued to writhe in pain as they clutched their respective injured parts.

"Ow ow ow...it huuuurts dattebayo/dattebane!" both of them whined, Kushina sucking on her swollen fingers, trying to ease the pain while the blonde was holding his bandaged stomach.

"Oh Naruto-kun, are you okay?" Ayumi purred in her sweet voice as she scooted closer to him, rubbing his stomach when she licked his whiskered cheek sensually.

Naruto shuddered in a small spark of pleasure, he could also feel her voluptuous breasts pressed to his right arm as she slowly grinded her body against him.

"N-Not now Ayumi-chan," he groaned as she smiled at him seductively.

"Why not, koi?" she asked, licking his earlobe making him shudder as her hand slowly went down his stomach.

"Hey don't do that! He's injured right now!" Kushina exclaimed with a frown, a vein popping on her forehead-the damn vixen had the gall to seduce HER SON/lover in front of her.

Ayumi pouted cutely as she just settled for snuggling by Naruto's side when Kushina pointed an accusing finger at her.

"And don't you dare bite my fingers ever again Ayumi-baka!" the bijuu again got a gleam in her eyes as she bit on 'accusing' finger...again.

"Waaaaah!" Kushina screamed in pain while Naruto sighed.

_'Why do these two act like children around each other!'_ he thought with a sweatdrop when due to her writhing, her knee slammed into his balls of 'glory' leading to his eyes rolling back into his head.

"FUUUUUUUCKKKK'TTEBAYO!" a scream was heard throughout the village.

**An Hour Later:**

_'Thank Kami these two are finally asleep,'_ Naruto thought in relief, currently staring at the ceiling with Ayumi and Kushina snuggled upto both of his sides, sleeping soundly with small smiles on their faces.

He turned his head upon hearing Kushina whimper lightly in her sleep as she tightened her hold on him.

"Narutoooo...salt ramen is better...noooo," a cute pout on face as she nuzzled her nose into his neck. He chuckled before kissing her forehead lightly as her smile widened in her sleep.

"Yesss...suck them harder Naruto-kooooiiiii," he sweatdropped when Ayumi moaned in her sleep, a light blush on his cheeks. Turning his head to the other side, his eyes softened at the adorable look on her face.

'_She looks so innocent when sleeping….' _He thought before kissing her forehead tenderly as she 'hmm'ed in sleep, her smile widening a bit.

A realization however suddenly hit him, his eyes widening a bit.

'_That's right, I was supposed to meet Yugao-chan. She's on patrol duty tonight,'_ he mused with a small smile, his arms holding both the red heads closely to him.

'_Wow…is this heaven or what?'_ a silly grin on the jinchuriki's face as both Kushina and Ayumi snuggled into his neck, content expressions on their faces.

Forming a seal-less shadow clone, he substituted with it.

'_Aah….damn I need to recover quickly and get back to training,'_ he thought with a sigh, stretching his muscles lightly while wincing at the bolts of pain that coursed through his body. The blonde gazed at Ayumi and Kushina with a smile as they snuggled into his clone.

Getting rid of his civilian clothes, Naruto got into his dark blue sweat shirt and shinobi pants. Entering the bathroom attached to the bedroom, he washed his face somewhat lazily. Gazing into the mirror, he stared at his image with a serious expression, having a lost look in his eyes.

_"That's why Naruto-kun, no matter how strong you get physically...as a shinobi, you will always be weak."_

A sigh escaped his lips as he gripped the sides of the sink, the blonde now lowering his head.

"I'm not weak dammit…stop acting like you know everything," he muttered to himself, his voice barely audible.

A low chuckle escaped his lips as he remembered how he'd pulled out a draw against Deidara by using his 'Sexy Jutsu'.

'_Heh….you have no idea how unpredictable I am,'_ Naruto thought with a smirk on his face as he stared at his image, his Rinnegan flashing for a second with a burst of chakra.

**Konoha: Patrol Border Around West Gate**

'_The moon's full tonight….'_ one purple haired Anbu thought with a small smile as she gazed at the moon, sitting on the edge of the large border wall. Her mask was laying beside her along with her katana as her purple violet hair flowed with the light breeze. Her legs were hanging by the edge of the wall; her hands in her lap as she found herself lost in the full glowing moon.

It really gave her a sense of peace whenever she watched the moon, especially a full one. It was one of her favorite hobbies. Several nights she would fall asleep in her bed while staring into the glowing heavenly body.

Closing her eyes, she sighed lightly.

'_I hope he's okay now….'_ she pondered with a somewhat melancholic look in her chocolate brown orbs as she grazed the hilt of her katana, her Anbu gloves laying on her lap. Her eyes saddened even more as she stared at her lap.

The last time she had talked with him was during the invasions, when she had broken down in front of him. She hated herself for it. She was not supposed to make him feel bad. He had already suffered enough in his life, and she was just complicating matters because of her stupid loneliness and jealousy.

She hated this childishness of hers, she was the most matured one amongst the fire queens, and the way she had broken in front of him…..was….just frustrating. Even though he had told her that he loved her, she still didn't want to be a burden to him. She might be somewhat pessimistic, but sometimes it's the pessimism that leads to optimistic things in your life.

'_It's better to be cautious and wary rather than bearing the pain later,'_ she thought with a small smile, her orbs reflecting the illumination.

Her eyes widened as she grabbed her katana in a blur before posing it at the neck of the one trying to sneak behind her.

"Whoa! Whoa!" her breathing hitched in shock as her hand, which was holding the katana, somewhat quivered against the skin of his neck.

"N-Naruto-kun?" she couldn't believe it, he was standing there with a nervous grin on his face.

"Hehehe….sorry for sneaking like that. Um….could you remove this thing?" he asked sheepishly making her snap out of her trance-like state.

"S-Sorry…" she stuttered, whipping her katana back as she sheathed it. Naruto smiled at her warmly as she stood up somewhat nervously.

"I…I didn't know you were back," she murmured in a low tone, gazing somewhat shyly at the concrete she was standing on. Her eyes widened when two strong arms wrapped around her frame.

"You're nervous….," Naruto whispered with a chuckle, hugging her form to him while she wrapped her arms around his waist, her face snuggled into his chest.

"How are you?" she asked softly as he sniffed in her hair, playing with the wisps of her hair gently while Yugao concentrated on his rhythmic heartbeats, feeling herself at peace.

"Hmm….I'm fine. Yep, don't worry….I'm fine, I'm fine. It's you who I'm worried about," he uttered softly before leaning back, surprising her somewhat.

He watched her face, mesmerized by her beauty while she too stared into his eyes, his oceanic blue orbs enchanting her as always.

"I'm sorry…." He whispered with a sad smile, now cupping her right cheek when she put her hand over his, shaking her head while her eyes were glossy.

"Don't be….please…." her eyes slowly closed as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in. Naruto didn't resist, the moon light reflecting off her face giving her an unearthly glow as he grazed his thumb over her soft milky skin.

"Mmm…" she moaned immediately when their lips met, kissing him gently while he too returned the gesture. The blonde snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her in while she deepened the kiss- her hands sifting through his spiky locks.

'_Damn…her lips are amazingly soft…'_ he thought, pleasure tingling through his body while Yugao's heart was hammering against her chest.

He took a step back when she further deepened the kiss, her hands fisting his jounin vest as the kenjutsu mistress began to kiss him hungrily. Soon they were involved in a battle of tongues while Yugao's knees began to buckle a bit.

Naruto tightened his hold on her waist, pouring his feelings into the kiss as she moaned loudly, immensely enjoying the kiss. This had always been her dream, to kiss him under the full moon.

Leaning back, both of them panted heavily as they stared at each other with love evident in their eyes. Yugao had a light blush on her cheeks as she panted against his neck, clutching him tightly to her.

"So…what were you doing? I don't think sitting like that while on patrol duty is good for the security of our village, huh Yugao-chan?" he teased with a light grin while she leaned back, pouting at him playfully.

"Well…." an embarrassed blush took birth on her face as she turned her head sideways, her index finger against her lips as an act of nervousness. Naruto raised an amused eyebrow at her as he took hold of her chin gently before making her look at him.

"Ne…what is it Yugao-chan?" he asked with a smile, her eyes shimmering in the moonlight.

"I….I was watching the moon," she spoke in a low tone, her cheeks lit in an embarrassed blush while he chuckled. Leaning forward, he caught her lips in a chaste kiss, drowning all her nervousness away. Tilting back, he smiled at her before taking her in a tight hug.

"That's a great hobby Yugao-chan…let's watch it together then," he whispered with a grin while her body stiffened in shock.

"W-What?" she stuttered making him laugh lightly. Guiding her, they both sat down beside her laying gear while Yugao felt like this was a dream.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Naruto verbalized with a smile, staring at the glowing star while she stared at him with wide eyes.

"What? Why do you look so surprised?" he asked in amusement after averting his gaze making her snap her head back, her cheeks red in embarrassment as she too stared at the moon.

A comfortable silence ensued between the two.

"I always found it fascinating," he turned his head to look at her while she kept staring above into the sky with a glowing smile on her face.

"Well it does suits you moonflower-chan," he grinned, making her nod at the meaning of her name.

"Yeah…it was an intended pun by my parents. The moon was full on the day I was born," she said with a somewhat sad smile before perking up as she pointed towards the moon.

"See those dim dark patches on it, it reminds me of ying-yang…the positive and negative aspects of life," she articulated with a bright smile as he gazed back at the moon, nodding with her.

"It just shows that not even the moon is all bright, it too can't reflect all the brightness of the stars…that it has darkness too. But the fact that it still shines over the whole world despite that darkness is what makes it truly great!" Naruto stared at Yugao with something akin to awe….and admiration. Her smile right then, was contagious….that smile on her face, that bright and glowing smile as she gazed at the moon, it was magical. And to tell the truth, he was stunned.

"And the way it shines through those foggy clouds is even more captivating!" she was like a giddy school girl, practically jumping in excitement.

"It acts like a slightly opaque curtain, giving it a mystical appearance, don't you think Naruto?!" she cheered before turning towards him to find him just staring at her.

"W-What?" her smile gave way to a sheepish grin as he smiled at her softly.

"Yugao-chan…" he muttered making her look at him in curiosity. Snaking his right hand to around her left shoulder, he pulled her closer to him gently.

"You're wonderful…" he grinned lightly making her blush crimson red as she tried to hide her face. Turning his orbs back towards the moon, he smiled serenely.

"Yes….it truly is a mesmerizing sight. It makes you at peace," he muttered while she rested her head on his shoulder, sighing in content.

'_Please don't let this be a dream….please don't,'_ she prayed, trying to drown herself in his warmth. Watching the moon, sitting with him like this in the middle of the night, was her fantasy, it had always been her dream. She thought that he might laugh at her, even the other fire queens thought that gazing at the moon was boring. But here he was, appreciating her for it. She felt like she had died and gone to heaven, now sitting in his arms like this.

"It really does makes you forget all your problems, like you don't have to worry about anything…." she lifted her head to watch his face, his infectious smile while he seemed to be in a reverie. Yugao smiled at him lovingly….he really was amazing.

"Are you…." She trailed as she cupped his cheek making him look at her.

"Are you okay Naruto-kun?" a worried look in her eyes, knowing what he went through with Itachi just a week ago.

Naruto smiled at her warmly as he kissed her palm softly, clutching her tightly to him.

"As long as I have you by my side like this, I'll be okay," a lone tear escaped Yugao's chocolate brown orbs as she took hold of his right hand.

"I'll be forever by your side, you don't have to worry about me leaving…" her voice quivered at the end, determination visible in her eyes.

"I'll be your glowing star, I'll reflect upon you as much brightness as I can, I will make you glow. And you will be my glowing full moon, someone who I can always watch and love," she verbalized making his eyes widen at her before they softened.

"Thank you…Yugao-chan, I love you," he spoke softly, kissing her on the cheek making her smile lovingly at him.

"I love you too," she muttered when they heard a loud groan making her blush.

"Eh, are you hungry?" Naruto asked her with an amused look on his face while she blushed profusely, shaking her head.

"N-No…that must be some animal or something," she stuttered making him roll his eyes, along with inwardly exclaiming at how cute she looked when flustered. Standing up, he went through a couple of hand seals before putting his index finger on the right side of his chest.

"**Kai" **he muttered as a medium sized scroll popped out. Setting it on the concrete floor, he opened it to reveal several squares. Most of them were pitch black while some of them were white. Putting his index finger on a black square, he muttered 'Kai' as…

POOF!

….a medium sized bowl poofed out.

"Yosh….here you go Yugao-chan," he spoke with a grin, now offering her the bowl. The purple haired Anbu though was not in the least bit surprised to find that it was ramen, a steaming bowl of ramen- which she deduced must be work of the seal he was using on the scroll. And she had developed quite an appetite for it anyway; the blonde in front of her had affected her in more ways than one.

Having unsealed a one for himself too, both of them now sat together, eating ramen as they just enjoyed the peaceful scenery of their village.

"So, why did you join the Anbu again?" Naruto asked while eating.

"Well, we figured that one of us needed to remain in the village at all times. So I joined up Anbu and became one of our godaime hokage's personal bodyguard. Though most of the time Kushina-nee claims that she doesn't need any bodyguards…but still," she replied making him nod, silence passing between the two.

"Ah! There's nothing like having a bowl of ramen under the full moon….won't you agree Yugao-chan?" he exclaimed with a grin, patting his belly as he set the empty bowl aside making her giggle as she nodded.

"Yep, and the fact that I can eat with you while watching the moon makes it all the merrier," a smirk on her face while he laughed sheepishly, a small blush on his cheeks.

He stiffened a bit when Yugao kissed him suddenly, cupping his cheeks lovingly. The blonde instantly melted into the kiss as he began to kiss her back.

"Thank you….Naruto-kun," she muttered softly after leaning back while he smiled at her, parting a strand of her hair from her face.

"Silly Yugao-chan…there's no thank you in love. In fact, I thank Kami for giving me an angel like you," he whispered, kissing her on the forehead while Yugao hugged him tightly, a euphoric smile on her face.

'_This is….where I want to spend the rest of my life- in his arms, under the brightness of the moon. Arigatou….Tsukiyomi-sama.'_

**Bah! NarutoxYugao is one of my favorite pairings! I hope I did this right! :D**

**Anyway, sorry for the lack of lemon, but it will be coming. Just thought I'd develop things first. **

**Well, please review. Sorry to those who prefer action over romance and stuff like this. But as I said before, this is the mini-filler arc going on here. The plot will advance after a couple of chapters. :)**

**N6023**


	47. Dear Diary

**Sorry for the late update guys, just got some things in the way. Anyway, here's the new chapter-**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 47- Dear Diary<strong>

* * *

><p>"Thank you….Naruto-kun," she muttered softly after leaning back while he smiled at her, parting a strand of her hair from her face.<p>

"Silly Yugao-chan…there's no thank you in love. In fact, I thank Kami for giving me an angel like you," he whispered, kissing her on the forehead while Yugao hugged him tightly, a euphoric smile on her face.

'_This is….where I want to spend the rest of my life- in his arms, under the brightness of the moon. Arigatou….Tsukiyomi-sama.'_

* * *

><p><strong>The Following Morning: Around 10 AM: Konoha: Uzumaki Apartment<strong>

* * *

><p>Musical chirping of birds was the first thing he heard, his eyes opening groggily as he stared at the ceiling. Last night's events flashed in his mind as a serene smile curled his lips upwards.<p>

'_It was magical...never knew the moon could be so amazing,'_ Naruto thought as the sunrays dimly lighted the room, the weather mainly cloudy with light cool breeze surging throughout Konoha. A blissful sigh escaped his lips as the gentle zephyr caressed his skin.

"Morning sweetheart," hearing the gentle dulcet voice of his mother, the blonde turned towards his right to find her gazing at him affectionately, an angelic smile on her face. Her eyes reflected the bright enthusiasm for life, the mischievousness, her maternal love, intense romantic desire...they were so expressive, staring into his own oceanic pools with unconditional love.

"Ohayou, Kaa-san," he uttered in a low tone with a smile. There she laid, in his right arm, fondly snuggled against his chest. She kept staring at him with that silly smile on her face, making him blush a bit in embarrassment.

"I-Is something on my face?" he asked as she closed her eyes momentarily, barely shaking her head before again staring into his eyes.

Turning to his left, the whiskered blonde was not so surprised to find Ayumi still deep in slumber, a small smile on her face while she too was snuggled against his torso.

'_Damn...this is the second time I've seen her sleep, she's incredibly adorable right now,'_ he mused with a light chuckle when he felt his chin being grabbed gently. Turning his head along the hand grabbing his chin, he raised an amused eyebrow at seeing Kushina pouting at him playfully.

"I'm sorry...did I just ignore you?" Naruto asked with a chuckle making her mutter 'meanie' as he tightened his hold on her, taking in the scent of her hair- yeah, thanks to her, he now loved sweet peas. The jinchuriki placed a tender kiss on her scalp making Kushina sigh dreamily.

'_I wish we could do this forever...'_ she thought with a tranquil smile.

"You know Kushina-chan, you don't need to get jealous when I give others some attention. You know I love you with all of my heart and will never betray you right? Besides I'm your son as well, I would never hurt your feelings willingly," Naruto verbalized lightly in her ears making her lift her head, her chin resting on his right chest while she had a defiant expression on her face.

"Well, it's not my fault that Uzumaki women are possessive, it's in my genes. I can't help but get jealous. I want you all to me, all of you...and it hurts me to see you with other women," she spoke with a sad look in her eyes whereas Naruto averted his gaze, his lips curling down.

"Even when I'm with Anko-chan, Yugao-chan, Kurenai-chan, Hana-chan, Hinata-chan and Ayumi-chan?" he blurted the names out in a chain making her shake her head.

"No, not with them...Anko, Yugao, Kurenai and Hana. They are like my little sisters, they love you very deeply. I know they won't be able to live without you. Even though it hurts me, I'm willing to share you with them. Hinata-chan is an amazing girl, a pure soul. She has loved you since you were kids, and I know her feelings are genuine. So she's okay in my book too. And about Ayumi..." Kushina sighed as she gazed at bijuu with an amused smile on her face while Naruto had a nervous expression on his face.

Kushina and Ayumi always kept fighting each other, and he knew how much he loved the bijuu. Naruto just hoped his mother would agree of her.

"Well what can I say about her, although we're at each other's necks most of the time, I still love her. She's my best friend, a sister I could never get, one whom I could quarrel and fight all I wanted to. She's one of my few precious people left in this world," her face had a gentle smile while Naruto was staring at her in surprise.

"Kaa-san..." his voice leaking his surprise making her smirk as she looked back at him.

"What? You'd actually thought I dislike her. No way'ttebane!" she cheered in a hushed tone making him laugh lightly.

'_Wow...now would you look at that...'_ the blonde however winced when the red head pinched his cheek.

"And now don't you dare tell this to her, this stays between us mister," she warned making him nod obediently as she erupted into a bright smile.

"Good!"

His expression however didn't lift up as he pondered over her words.

"You said you wanted me all to yourself, that it hurt you to see me with other women. Then...how can you be alright with sharing me?" he asked in a somewhat sad tone, already knowing the answer. Kushina's eyes softened as she cupped his cheek soothingly, a melancholic smile on her face.

"Because, you silly...I love you. It's amazing what love can make us do. I love you, nothing matters in this world to me more than your happiness. I want to fill you with love. I know I alone can do it, but the fact is that those girls along with Ayumi hold a part of your heart too. So I'll need them too," she answered as a sigh escaped his lips while he held her right hand on his cheek.

"It's...just not fair. I know that..." Naruto closed his eyes as he released a shaky breath while Kushina looked at him in worry.

"I know that I will never be able to share you with anyone, I will not be able to share anyone of you girls. I can't...I just can't. If I try to imagine anyone of you with some other guy, I can't stand it. It feels like my heart is being squeezed from inside. I...I'm Ka-"

"Shhh..." Kushina chided in her melodic tone, her index finger resting on his lips while there was a look of understanding in her violet orbs.

"I understand Naruto-kun, but write this in your ninja handbook that you're the only one for me," she whispered making his eyes widen somewhat.

"The fact is that, we women, us females are mysterious beings," she started when he muttered.

"You have no idea...ow!" he exclaimed when she again pinched his nose in a reprimanding way.

"As I said, we are complicated beings, what we do is far beyond the understanding of males, who are quite simple and straight forward," she spoke making him narrow his eyes with a pout.

"Hey, we are not idiots," he defended his race making her giggle lightly.

"Oh I'm not calling you idiot Naruto. Just know that we hold a special power, the power of sacrifice, for our dearly loved ones. We are willing to do anything for the one we love, for the one we love unconditionally. Nature has made us that way. There's a reason nature chose us to be mothers, for us to carry our off springs for nine months, and in your case, ten months. Our heart is strong and compassionate by nature. Know that sharing is difficult, extremely difficult for possessive women like me, though it may not be much of a problem for kinky women like Ayumi," she articulated with a light laugh making him smile lightly.

"It does hurts me to share you, but the fact that you're still mine, and that I can hold you in my arms, kiss you, touch you, make love to you...is what keeps my heart happy," her left hand on her chest as she expressed her feelings with half lidded eyes while he listened to every word she said.

"It's complicated isn't it?" she asked with a chuckle while he just shook his head with a smile, now lifting her chin.

"Yeah, it is. But I think I understand what you're trying to say. It hurts you, but as long as it's for my happiness, you are willing to go through with it," he muttered making her nod with a grin.

"But..." he started, leaning closer to her making her eyes widen a bit while her cheeks grew a light shade of pink.

"I think I enjoy you being possessive Kushina-chan. It reminds me every time that you are mine, and mine only," he spoke in a husky tone making her close her eyes as she too leaned forward.

"Only yours..." she whispered, clutching his dark blue sweat shirt as she pulled him closer to her.

* * *

><p><strong>Five Minutes Later<strong>

* * *

><p>Ayumi yawned lightly as she stretched her arms above her head, leading to her assets jiggling in the process.<p>

'_Ah...I haven't slept that peacefully in a long time,'_ she thought with a smile, the cool breeze making her want to lay in bed all day. Her sensitive ears however twitched upon hearing moans beside her, her grogginess instantly evaporating.

'_What the...'_ her eyes widened in shock to see Naruto and Kushina heavily making out with each other, the latter moaning lustfully as she kissed him hungrily.

"Ah...yesss, Narutooo...don't s-stop," Kushina moaned lightly, her head arched sideways as the blonde, lying on top of her, sucked on the smooth skin of her neck. The hokage's kimono was parted off, her shoulders exposed while most of left breast was bare too, currently being cupped by the blonde jinchuriki.

Ayumi's lower lip protruded out in a childish pout as she watched them make out so passionately.

'_He never did those things to me...'_ she thought, waiting for them to finish up, though it seemed neither of the two was ready to stop anytime soon. If anything, Ayumi knew that they were ready to take it all the way right then.

"Ahem..." it was funny how both of them sat straight like rods in the blink of an eye, furious blushes on their faces.

"A-Ayumi-chan..." Naruto muttered as he gazed sideways while Kushina covered herself up with her kimono, an irritated expression on her face as she glared at Ayumi.

"Ohayou...Ayumi-baka...a pretty nice time to wake up huh?" the red head greeted with a forced smile making Naruto sigh while Ayumi grinned at her.

"Why yes Kushina-baka. In fact, it was the perfect time for me to wake up," she replied making the hokage's left eye twitch when Naruto stepped in before things got out of control...like before.

"Ah! Kaa-san, don't you have your hokage duties to do?" he inquired making Kushina's eyes widen in realization.

"Oh right!" the Uzumaki redhead immediately sprang from the bed as she began to gather her clothes and other stuff.

"Shit! I'm gonna be late again! Those stuck up elders are again going to sue me'ttebane!" she paced around with an anxious expression on her face making Naruto laugh awkwardly.

"Hey, didn't you say you had left a shadow clone in the office last night?" Ayumi asked with a raised eyebrow making Kushina stop abruptly as she gazed at her former tenant.

"Oh! You're right!" she exclaimed in relief, an embarrassed grin on her face making Naruto sweat drop. Her grin however soon faded as she realized something else.

"But still...I will get a painful headache after I dispel that clone due to all those memories of work from last night. It's like a freaking hangover dattebane!" Kushina yelled anxiously while Naruto got off the bed as he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Okay, calm down Kaa-san. You're the hokage now, you should act more maturely. I mean, I don't mind it at all. But, what about those elders? I don't think they'll approve of this," now he spoke in a reprimanding way making her 'hmph' in response as the redhead crossed her arms over her chest, an annoyed expression on her face.

"I'll act like I want to. Being a hokage doesn't mean I'll become like that old ass jiji or a cold prick like Hiashi...as the hokage, I have to protect the village and its people, and I'll do just that," she uttered with determination, a sudden seriousness in her tone making Naruto sigh. Well he couldn't argue with that, every hokage had his own unique style. And his mother was a mature woman, well...she could be if she wanted to. But he was kind of happy that she still acted somewhat childish, it always helped in strengthen the bond between them. That and it helped in her not becoming too prideful.

"Well, I'll see you later Naruto. I think you're mostly healed due to Ayumi here, but I guess you should check in with Kaa-san just in case," Kushina spoke making him nod while Ayumi just laid there in bed, enjoying the cool breeze.

"Also, no ramen for lunch or dinner. You need to have a nutritious diet, and I'm not taking no for an answer," her tone was absolute making the blonde sigh in defeat while Ayumi watched the scene in amusement.

"I'll just be gone for a few hours, will dispel the clone and try to get over the headache. Then I'll come back after making another clone to watch the office for a while as I prepare our lunch. I'll call you through the Uzushio seal's telepathically when the lunch is ready, and don't you dare make me wait! I ain't taking any excuses!" the redhead finished making Naruto sigh inwardly as he nodded compliantly.

'_Damn, she's so pushy sometimes.'_

'_Hmm...what a strange relation, one second they're lovers, and another, just like everyday mother and son,'_ Ayumi pondered with a smile, laying with her head resting in the palm of her right hand, her elbow propped on the pillow as she gazed at the two.

"Well, you go take a shower first, I have something to discuss with Ayumi," Kushina uttered, glancing at her former tenant.

"Fine I guess," he replied with a shrug.

After Naruto entered the bathroom, Kushina walked towards the living room, signalling Ayumi to follow her making the bijuu sigh.

'_Man...this bed is so comfortable. Why couldn't she just talk here?'_

* * *

><p><strong>Living Room<strong>

* * *

><p>"So, what's his condition?" Kushina asked, now gazing outside through the window of the kitchen as she stood against the slab with Ayumi standing in front of her, now rubbing the back of her neck.<p>

"It was difficult for him. Itachi's betrayal sure crushed him emotionally, but now he's stable. I tried to help him as much as I could, but Tsunade and that girl Shizune played a big part too," the nine tailed fox replied in a serious tone while the hokage continued to stare outside.

"Are you sure? He's not masking his true emotions like before right? I don't want him hiding anything from me," Ayumi's eyes softened at noticing the concern in Kushina's voice as she shook her head.

"No, he's not hiding anything, especially from you. I can't believe you're doubting him like this Kushina," she voiced making the hokage glance at her sharply.

"I'm not doubting him. I'm his mother, I'm just worried about him. He's a jinchuriki, all of the Akatsuki members are after him and he just had a small dose of it. Since the chunin exams started, his life has turned upside-down. First he achieves Rinnegan by being emotionally tortured, then the shock of seeing me alive. Then the invasions, bringing Mikoto back, Itachi's betrayal, and now he just faced that Deidara guy from Iwa. I think he's been spent up- both emotionally, as well as physically. He needs a break from all this stuff," Kushina explained when Ayumi shook her head straight away.

"No Kushina, there's no time for any break. For his safety, we have to start training him immediately. He's only at about jounin level. To counter Akatsuki effectively, Naruto needs to be at kage level as soon as possible. We have to push him," her voice was sharp while Kushina stayed quiet, the chirping of birds filling the tense silent atmosphere. The godaime hokage however seemed to be contemplating something, a calm look on her face.

"He has amazing potential. Naruto is mature now, he thinks rationally and has more control over his emotions. I know that he's under pressure, but we'll be there for him at every step of the way. Also, he also has to learn to control my vast power someday," the bijuu started seriously making the Uzumaki redhead look at him.

"Not soon though, I want him to work on his own skills right now. He needs to become strong as a shinobi first, we can work on his jinchuriki strength later. And we know controlling your power is no joke," the bijuu nodded as she folded her arms over her chest, wearing a plain blue kimono.

"You think he's ready to face my hatred yet?" she questioned.

"No, not yet. To face your darkness, the will of your evil chakra, he needs to get rid of his own darkness first. As long he has that, your chakra can easily manipulate him. I'll help him with that, we can help him with that. But first, we need to think of the present. He'll be back to his full health in a day or two, and I think I have a plan on how to train him," Kushina had a smirk on her face as she gazed outside. She pushed herself off the slab as the redhead now began to prepare breakfast.

"What do you have in mind?" Ayumi asked in curiosity.

"You'll see..."

...

"Hey Kushina..." the bijuu called.

"Yeah..."

"During the invasions, Naruto met someone, a cloaked woman, one who is quite proficient in ice attacks," this caught the redhead's attention as she stopped in her chores, a surprised expression on her face.

"A cloaked woman? You're telling me this now? And why didn't Naruto tell me about any of this?" her eyes were narrowed in anger making Ayumi sigh.

"When did we get the time? After the invasions, Naruto was deeply injured and unconscious for two days. After waking up, you were too busy fawning over him. At the same time, the scene with Itachi happened and Jiraiya took him to Tanzaku town. And now I'm standing here after a week, we didn't have the time to tell you anything," she verbalized while Kushina resumed her cooking, understanding her point.

"So, what's her story?" she asked as Ayumi remembered that mystery woman, how she seemed to know everything regarding the Rinnegan and Naruto's white chakra.

"Nothing, just your everyday clichéd new character in life, where you keep wondering if he or she is good or evil," the kyuubi replied making Kushina glance at her with a glare as she shrugged nonchalantly.

"What? Seriously, why does everyone appear without ever showing his or her face? Look at that masked man who attacked you years ago, then Orochimaru hides behind the faces of his vessels, the Akatsuki behind their hats and high neck cloaks, now this stranger too. If they think they're so badass, why so afraid to show their faces? I mean, I never hide myself, nor do you or Naruto. We face our enemies head on," she complained making Kushina shake her head in exasperation.

"Ayumi, just get to the point, who is that cloaked woman?"

"And oh, there's something that woman told us. Something that explains as to why you possess the Sharingan," Ayumi worded with a devious grin.

Kushina snapped her head, her eyes widened in shock.

"Tell me'ttebane!"

* * *

><p><strong>Half An Hour Later:<strong>

* * *

><p>"Took your sweet time, didn't you?" Ayumi asked with a raised eyebrow, currently eating steamed rice lazily as a refreshed Naruto entered the living room, wearing his usual gear except his trench coat. Kushina was sitting at the opposite side of the table, just finishing her own miso soup as she stood up.<p>

"Eat up Naruto, and don't leave anything," she spoke firmly, walking towards him as her lips curled upwards. Kissing him on the cheek, she continued on towards the bedroom as the blonde sat besides Ayumi, a small smile on his face.

"It's been a while since we had a home cooked meal, huh Ayumi-chan?" he spoke followed by a mutter of 'Itadakimasu' as he began to dig in.

"Yeah, Kushina's cooking is really something. Even something as simple as steamed rice with umeboshi pickles along with miso soup makes my taste buds dance in joy," she muttered, eating her steamed white rice fervently making Naruto grin at her.

"You sure seem to enjoy Kaa-san's cooking huh?"

"Who wouldn't? You yourself are head over heels when it comes to her cooking...as well as her," Ayumi teased with a smirk as she slurped the soup through the bowl making the whiskered teen blush lightly as they ate their remaining breakfast in relative silence.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha Hospital: Several Minutes Later:<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>I wonder where Tsunade-kaa-chan is. She already left her apartment, even Shizune-nee-chan wasn't there,'<em> Naruto thought as he entered the compound, walking towards the hospital's entrance.

Entering the hospital, he blinked at the scene in front of him.

"Move your lazy asses!"

"I want all the emergency medical reports of patients admitted in the ICU ward! And you, I want all the accounts of the hospital's budget since I left. And give me that! And you, yeah you with the funky ponytail, get me the file regarding the stock supplies. You with the limp-in-step miss virgin no more, get me a cup of coffee. I'm the one in charge here so get to work all of you!"

There she stood, the slug sanin in the middle of the large hall as she barked out orders to everyone, a white coat over her shoulders with Shizune too moving with the others.

"Ah, it's good to see Tsunade-sama back."

"Brings back old memories doesn't it?"

"It was getting dull in here anyway, things are always interesting with her infamous temper around...haha!"

"Man, she's still pushy as ever! What's up with the stuck up attitude, couldn't she even say hi?!"

"My ponytail is not funky, this is it! I'm getting a haircut today!"

Naruto stood there dumbfounded as nurses, doctors, physicians, surgeons and assistants scurried after Tsunade's orders while the slug sanin walked back into the corridors, Shizune following her with Ton Ton in her arms.

"Hey move around!"

"Oh..." the whiskered blonde stepped aside as two men, holding a large box went on their way, towards where Tsunade had walked to.

"Move move!"

Dodging another pair of workers carrying a large polished wooden table, Naruto somehow reached the receptionist's desk after scuttling through the wild staff. The receptionist, a woman in her early twenties, also seemed to be busy- currently arranging all the papers and documents on her table, probably for Tsunade or Shizune to check.

"Excuse me miss, I need to know Tayuya and Hyuga Hinata's ward number," he spoke politely, his hands resting on the desk while she continued to do her work.

"Sorry but I'm currently busy at the moment, could you just wait for a mo-" lifting her head, her eyes widened upon recognizing who she was talking to.

"N-Naruto-sama!" it was the hero of Konoha, one who played a big part in saving the village during the invasion- wielder of the legendary Rinnegan and holder of the legendary Elemental Dragons Summoning contract. And most importantly, the boy seemed to be really close to the godaime hokage.

"Uh...yeah, and no need to call me that. I ain't an old geezer demanding respect here. Naruto-san is just fine," he uttered with a light grin as she averted her gaze timidly, a small smile on her pretty face.

"So, I just needed to know where Tayuya and Hyuga Hinata have been admitted to," he verbalized after an awkward silence making her jerk.

"O-Oh...right..." she muttered, now rummaging through the paper-mess on her desk to find the patient entry register. Opening the large file, she started to go through the names.

"They both were admitted here yesterday around noon, if that helps..." the jinchuriki offered making her nod as she turned the page back.

"Ah...here it is...Tayuya and Hyuga Hinata, they were both admitted in the same ward. It's on the first floor, room number twenty three."

"Thanks...and oh, good luck with handling kaa-chan," waving lightly with a smirk, he shunshined out in a puff of smoke making the receptionist blink.

'_Kaa...chan?'_

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha Hospital: First Floor: Room Number 23<strong>

* * *

><p>Appearing in front of the ward, he grabbed the door when he heard some voices.<p>

"You shouldn't have used Uzume twice in such a short time like that Hinata, you know how much chakra that technique drains from you. And not only that, you used Kaiten Mitama on top of that. That was very irresponsible of you," that stoic but concerned voice, it was definitely Hiashi's.

"I'm sorry tou-san, but the circumstances demanded drastic actions. I didn't have time to think of the consequences. Naruto-kun's life was in danger," Hinata's voice too was absolute; there was no stutter, no nervousness. Silence ensued in the room as Naruto stood outside; the knob clutched in his hand- the blonde having a sad smile on his face.

"I understand your affections for Uzumaki Naruto, but you need to know that your life is precious too Hinata. Naruto-san is a jinchuriki, and with the Uzumaki clan's naturally fast healing rate along with his special condition, he can handle life threatening injuries much better," this stung Naruto a little, though nevertheless, he couldn't argue with the logic. Hiashi was Hinata's father, a concerned father; he completely understood the man's position.

"Hiashi-sama is right Hinata. Naruto-san is very strong, he can handle himself. You should not carelessly put your life on the line like that. Things went your way this time, but that might not be the case in the future, just be careful..." it was Neji. This surprised the jinchuriki considering he wasn't expecting him to open up to Hinata so quickly.

"I understand, but Naruto-kun being strong doesn't mean that he won't need my help. He has already faced the difficulties in his life alone since he was a baby. I won't let him share his burdens alone, and I will continue to risk my life for him. If he can heal quicker than all of us, that doesn't mean he has to be the most injured one every time. I love him father, and you know how precious to me he is. I understand your concern for me, but I'm a kunoichi, chunin of Konohagakure no Sato, I can handle myself!" this greatly stunned Naruto, and he was sure that others in the room were shocked too.

He knew Hinata had gotten confident since the preliminaries, but he never expected her to talk back to her father, the leader of the Hyuga clan like that. And what's more, she was defending him, as well as her own pride as a kunoichi.

'_Hinata-chan...'_

"Very well, I understand your feelings on the matter. Still I ask you to not use your own life to protect him. If anything, train harder, gain the strength you need to protect him. You sacrificing yourself will not only hurt us, but Naruto-san too," this time Hinata remained silent when Naruto heard the sound of footsteps coming from inside, probably Hiashi and Neji walking towards the door.

'_Well let's just hope they didn't have the Byakugan activated...'_

"Rest well, we'll come to check on you later," Hiashi spoke as the door slid open. Out walked the leader of the Hyuga clan, followed by Neji...and surprisingly, Hanabi too.

"Naruto-san?" Hiashi called in a surprised tone, the blonde standing along the opposite wall with his arms folded over his chest.

"Hiashi-sama..." the blonde acknowledged respectfully, taking the stoic man back. He still couldn't believe that this was the same Naruto, the orange jumpsuit wearing brat you used to prank Konoha a little more than a month ago.

'_He looks...just like Minato...'_

Neji too was surprised as he stared at the jinchuriki, a neutral expression on his face with Hanabi gazing at the whiskered blonde with something akin to curiosity and admiration.

"I presume you are here to meet Hinata and Tayuya-san?" Naruto had a serious expression on his face as he nodded back.

"Yes, as you know, Hinata was badly injured during the mission along with Tayuya. So I'm here to check up on them," his tone seemed restricted, firm.

"I heard you were also wounded quite badly in battling against Orochimaru and the Akatsuki," Hiashi uttered making the blonde glance down at himself.

"I'm almost completely healed now, so it's no big deal."

"I see, well that's good. We should be going now, see you later Naruto-san," the Hyuga clan head turned as he started to walk with Hanabi following while Neji nodded lightly at Naruto, surprising the blonde somewhat.

Walking forward, he grabbed the knob before stopping.

"Hiashi-sama...," he called making the Hyuga clan head stop in his tracks, waiting for him to speak.

"Don't worry, I will protect Hinata-chan, no matter what happens. You can rest assured," a serious look on his face as he gazed at Hiashi's back while Neji and Hanabi were looking at him in surprise.

"I know..." was the answer Naruto got as the stoic leader began to walk again. Hanabi flashed Naruto a small smile as she too started to follow her father along with Neji.

Shifting his eyes back towards the door, he sighed before sliding the door open.

DWRRRKK!

"OHAYOU!" a bright grin on his face as his voice reverberated throughout the room.

"It's close to noon now dumbass!" he opened his eyes to see Hinata glaring at Tayuya who had an annoyed expression on her face. Ignoring the sour redhead, he walked towards Hinata.

"So Hinata-chan, how are you feeling?" a smile on his face as the Hyuga heiress turned back towards him, a bright smile on her face. She looked to be fine for the most part, just some bandages here and there. And this greatly surprised Naruto, considering the amount of damage she had received, he wasn't expecting for her to be healed so quickly. In fact, even Tayuya looked to be almost completely fine now.

'_It must be because of Tsunade-kaa-chan...'_ he mused.

"I'm fine now Naruto-kun. But how are you? Are you feeling alright? I definitely would've come to check on you if I could," Naruto stood there stunned, not blinking as he gazed at Hinata's worried face. Even Tayuya seemed to be surprised.

Few more seconds passed before the blonde burst out laughing making Hinata look at him in confusion while Tayuya shook her head in exasperation.

"Huh? What's so funny?" the lavender eyed kunoichi asked as his laughter got even louder, the blonde currently holding his stomach. Tayuya massaged her forehead while Hinata could feel her lips curling down into a frown, feeling as if Naruto was laughing at her.

"What's so funny?! I didn't crack any joke Naruto-kun! I'm seriously worried about you," her voice had gotten louder as Naruto's laughter subsided eventually.

"Hinata-chan, you should've looked at your face. I mean, I'm completely fine now. Can't you see? I'm the one who came to check on you and yet you still say you would've come to check on me. Really, just look at the irony of the situation! Look, even the sound shit was surprised," he pointed a thumb at Tayuya making the said redhead snap her head towards him, a surprised look in her eyes.

'_Did he just call me...?'_

"What was that shithead?" she asked, her eyes narrowed when Hinata again glared at her.

"Tayuya-chan, I told you not to call him that!"

"Well your boyfriend started it!" she retorted while Naruto looked at her with an amused look in his eyes.

"What, you didn't hear that...sound-shit-chan?" he mocked with a light grin.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed in shock while a vein popped on Tayuya's forehead.

"Why you little motherfucker..." she started before taking a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. Hinata sighed while Naruto lightly blushed at that.

"_Oh she doesn't know how right she is, does she?" _Ayumi commented making him nod.

"Anyway, how are you feeling Tayuya?" he asked, his tone suddenly becoming serious, startling the redhead as she stared at him in surprise.

"I-I'm fine..." she somewhat stuttered, not knowing how to respond to the sudden change in Naruto's aura.

The blonde nodded with a small smile as he closed the door behind him.

"Thanks for protecting Hinata-chan," he grinned lightly making her 'hmph'.

"She's my friend, of course I would do that," she replied, her bed besides Hinata's separated by a curtain, which was currently pulled to the side. She was sitting on her bed by the window.

"The amount of injuries we received, it's only thanks to Tsunade-sama that we were able to heal so quickly," Hinata uttered while gazing at her hands. Naruto walked to sit on a stool beside her bed.

"She is the legendary sanin after all, the best medic Konoha currently has," he spoke with pride making the Hyuga heiress smile at him. She knew how close the blonde jinchuriki was to the slug sanin, to the point that they considered each other as mother and son.

Naruto and Kushina loved each other romantically, something that had surprised Hinata when Kurenai had informed her of it. But she could understand the fact that it would be difficult for Naruto to not view his 'suddenly appeared beautiful young mother' as a woman, he never got a mother's love after all. However, what had really surprised her was how even Kushina was able to fall for him, but oh well...she couldn't blame their hokage for that too- it was Uzumaki Naruto, he just had that charm about him.

Hinata lowered her gaze as she stared at her lap, her eyes getting softer.

"You don't need to protect me," she whispered making his eyes widen.

"So you were listening in huh?" Naruto spoke in a low tone while Tayuya was currently staring outside.

"I can take care of myself, I'm not the same girl anymore. I don't need father worrying like that over me, nor you," Hinata verbalized, clutching the white blanket tightly in her hands making the blonde sigh.

"Hinata-chan, no need to get so worked up. Everybody needs to be protected at one point or another, we can't do everything alone. I can't do everything alone, no matter how strong I get...I will always need your help," he worded as she looked at him in surprise.

"You will?"

"Of course, I'm not Kami-sama or anything after all, and neither are you. Hiashi-sama is just concerned over you, that's all. You need to know Hinata-chan, the fact that you faced a member of Akatsuki and came out alive, was a miracle in itself. Hiashi-sama knows that. He knows how close he was to losing you...I know how close I was to losing you," his hand slowly moved, gently grabbing hers. Naruto had a somewhat sad look on his face as he squeezed her soft hand gently.

'_Naruto-kun...'_ it really warmed her heart that he cared for her so much. Even after getting himself almost killed there, he still worried for her, for his comrades and precious people. He never ceased to amaze her; she just kept admiring and loving him more and more.

"Don't worry, for your sake, I won't let anything happen to me!" she uttered in a hushed tone, a 'Naruto-ish' grin on her face as she put her other hand over his. Naruto looked up at her in surprise, his lips curling up in a warm smile.

"Man, where'd that shy and cute Hinata go?" he teased making her blush lightly when she realized something, her lower lip coming out in an extremely cute pout.

"What? I'm not cute now Naruto-kun?" her lips looked so kissable right then. Naruto barely resisted the urge to make out with her right there.

"Anyway..." he started, in a somewhat serious tone.

"You should stop trying to prove yourself from now on," he spoke with a sigh. Hinata looked at him, a puzzled look on her face.

"What I mean to say is that you don't need to prove yourself to anyone anymore, understand? Everyone knows how strong you are and how capable of a kunoichi you are," he was now looking outside through the window with Tayuya doing the same, the redhead currently lost in her own thoughts.

"Why? Why are you saying this to me all of a sudden?" the lavender eyed heiress asked softly.

"It's because I care about you Hinata, and I want you to live your life like you want, not trying to always prove yourself at every step of the way. Just be you and don't take shit from anyone. If the elders of your clan still don't approve of you as the heiress, well they can go and fuck their old wrinkled wives. The village knows about you as the Hyuga prodigy who was able to achieve the second level of Byakugan- something never seen or heard of. Your father knows the difficulties you faced throughout your childhood, and yet you were still able to overcome them in the end. I know how you overcame your fear against Akatsuki yesterday and fought them, not caring for your own life. That takes guts Hinata-chan, and you have it in spades. The hokage, Kaa-san knows how strong you are, that's why she sent you on such an important mission with Ero-sennin. So you don't have to prove yourself to anyone, not to your clan elders, not to Hiashi-sama, not to the hokage, not to the villagers, and definitely not to me!" he exclaimed lightly, now shifting his pupils back to see Hinata scribbling on a familiar diary, a diary whose proverbial title made his eyes twitch- 'Naruto-kun: The Insightful Philosopher.'

'_What the...hell?'_

She was cutely nodding her head repeatedly, furiously scribbling on her beautiful diary while mumbling to herself.

"The 'F' word has to be censored..." a vein popped on the blonde's forehead while Tayuya too was looking at Hinata in confusion.

"Give me that!" the blonde snatched the diary off her hands.

"Naruto-kun! H-Hey!" Hinata exclaimed loudly, leaning forward to take it back as the blonde held her back by her shoulders, his other hand keeping the diary away.

"I'm gonna get rid of this diary today!" standing up, he was about to throw it when Hinata, displaying amazing agility, flipped forward on her bed before striking him lightly on the shoulder (the one holding her diary) using her index finger.

"Whoa!" his arm went limp as the diary fell to the ground. Naruto glared at Hinata who had a look of relief on her face.

"That was dirty Hinata-chan!"

"No it wasn't! I cherish that diary very much! It contains every bit of great things you have ever said to me, or to anyone. Do you have any idea how much research I had to do to collect all that?!" she questioned, her eyes determined as she now reached for her diary on the floor- her knees on the bed. Naruto blushed upon having a view of her shapely ass, the hospital gown clinging to her curves.

Realizing that she was about to get her diary, he channelled chakra through his left limp arm quickly.

'_**Banshou Tenin!**__'_

Hinata's eyes widen when the diary whizzed to his right hand.

"Here it goes!" just as he was about to throw it out of the window, Hinata's legs came upward in a blur to trap his right arm in a scissor hold.

"Damn it Hinata! This thing isn't so precious! Don't you have any idea how embarrassing this diary is?!" Naruto argued, trying to overpower her hold comically while Hinata was supporting herself on her hands- currently on the floor.

"Maybe for you! But I won't let you dispose something so precious to me!"

"What a stubborn girl!"

"What an inconsiderate boy!"

"Wow, this sure is entertaining..." Tayuya uttered in a bored tone, her eyes half-lidded as she gazed at the duo while sitting on her bed cross-legged.

Naruto had his eyes closed as he gritted his teeth, still trying to overpower her. Hinata's eyes widened when his arm began to slip out of her hold.

"Tayuya-chan, I'll accept that offer of yours if you help me here!" she exclaimed desperately making the redhead's eyes widen.

"Ah damn it! This is getting annoying!" Naruto huffed as he formed a seal less shadow clone besides him. Just as the clone was about to take the diary from his hand...

POOF!

A kunai nailed him on the forehead.

"Sorry blondie, but that diary has to die another day," the jinchuriki's eyes began to twitch. This is was getting ridiculous now, just because of an embarrassing diary, these girls were going crazy.

Tayuya hopped off her bed, a mocking smirk on her face.

"Better luck next time shithead-kun," she uttered, her hand just an inch away from the diary when...

"Look it's Kin-chan!" he exclaimed, now staring towards the window.

"Kin-chan?!" Tayuya turned back with a bright smile to find no one. Flexing his left hand, he grinned devilishly.

'_Thanks Ayumi-chan.'_

Hinata's eyes widened when his previously limp left hand moved to...

Puk!

...poke her asshole. Her cheeks went through several shades of red- each shade darker than the previous one.

"KYAAAH!" a high pitched scream resounded throughout the hospital.

...

...

"I can't believe you did that Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed in a whiny tone, a teary pout on her face as she threw a pillow at him.

Whoosh!

He dodged it.

"That was a payback for jyuukening my left arm'ttebayo!"

He threw a pillow back.

Whoosh!

Hinata dodged it too.

Bham!

It hit Tayuya's face dead on.

"Why you shithead!" grabbing several pillows, now standing on Hinata's bed- the redhead had a maniacal grin on her face while Naruto was standing at the corner of the room, still holding Hinata's diary.

"You're on fucker!" she exclaimed with a grin.

"Yeah, that diary is mine!" Hinata too joined in, holding several pillows- Kami knew where they were coming from.

"Take this!"

Woosh! Whoosh!

"Hey...ow! Fuck! Damn it! You sound bitch!"

Tayuya was currently standing in front of the door, panting a bit while Hinata was standing on her bed, she too a little out of breath.

"Hehe...how'd that feel shithead-kun?" Tayuya teased while Hinata had her eyes on her precious diary.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as a smirk formed on his face.

Hinata and Tayuya's eyes widened when the pillows began to lift off the floor, now hovering in midair.

"Hehehehe...you'll soon know soundshit-chan," that prankster grin on his face while Tayuya gulped audibly.

"Hey that's cheating! No jutsu, this is just a fucking game right?" she argued, looking at Hinata for help who was already backing down from her bed slowly- making her sweat drop.

"Take this DATTEBAYO!" Naruto yelled with a crazy grin with Ayumi sweat dropping from inside at his silly antics. The pillows went at whooping speeds; however, what he failed to take in account was the diary in his hands- which also went sailing forward due to his incomplete control.

'_Oh damn...'_

WHOOSH!

"Take cover!" Hinata yelled as she dived behind her bed with Tayuya leaping sideways just in time.

DRRRK!

"Alright kiddos, time for you checku-"

BHAM! BHAM! BHAM!

**WHAM!**

"Ouch...that's...gotta hurt," Naruto muttered as the book slammed in on the visitor's forehead after the pillow barrage.

"Tsunade-sama!" his eyes widened in horror when he recognized the figure on the floor, covered in pillows and one particular diary.

"Whoever did this...is gonna die painfully today!" he heard Tsunade's exclamation beneath the curtain of pillows as Shizune helped her mentor up.

Tsunade had a small lump on her forehead, a pissed off expression on her face as she barged back in.

WHAM!

Shizune cringed when the door was slammed against its hinges-courtesy of a pissed off sanin.

"WHO THREW THAT?!"

Tsunade yelled, standing at the doorway when her eyes widened as she noticed the condition of the ward being upside down.

IV stands were on the floor along with bed sheets while the blankets were hanging by the fan's blades at the ceiling. The documents for patient's treatment record were currently floating in midair as they came to rest on the floor nicely.

"U-Um...Tsunade-sama..." turning her head to her right, she spotted Hinata sitting on the floor cross-legged, the heiress having an embarrassed blush on her face while Tayuya was sitting with her back against the wall, a nervous expression on her face.

A vein popped on the sanin's forehead as she took threatening steps towards the duo, an evil smirk on her face as she cracked her knuckles in the process.

"I take it you two are responsible for this AND for hitting me with those pillows?" she asked as both of them shook their heads like robots.

"It was shithead!" Hinata turned to glare at Tayuya who was currently pointing towards the open window.

"Shithead?" Shizune asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, shithead...uh, what was his name? Yeah! Naruto!" the redhead uttered with a grin as Hinata's glare intensified, not wanting Naruto to face the trouble later.

"I see..." Tsunade now had her eyes shadowed, her fists currently clenched as a mysterious chuckle escaped her lips making Shizune sweat drop.

"Shizune, let's pay Naruto-chan a visit tonight."

'_Oh boy...here we go again.'_

Tayuya meanwhile was grinning victoriously to herself.

'_Payback's a bitch, huh shithead?'_

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Torture and Interrogation Department: Interrogation Chambers<strong>

* * *

><p>POOF!<p>

"You're late Jiraiya," Kushina spoke seriously, currently standing with Ibiki in a spacious hall as the toad sanin appeared via shunshin.

"Well it's not my fault the guards are so stuck up. They just had to check my identity several times," he spoke with a grin while rubbing the back of his head making the godaime sigh.

'_The pervert...'_

"Anyway, why do you called us here?" she asked as Ibiki stood by her side silently, a curious look in his eyes.

"Ah yes..." going through several hand signs, Jiraiya slammed his right hand on the floor.

"**Kekkai: Gama Hyourou **(Barrier: Toad Gourd Prison)"

POOF!

A gourd shaped toad appeared out of the smoke while Kushina raised an eyebrow at that. Nodding at the toad, Jiraiya went through a few hand seals before placing his right hand on its back, applying some chakra in the process.

Soon its mouth started to buff up like a balloon before...

SQUICH!

"Ugh!"

It spat out a body from its mouth. Kushina's eyes widened when she recognized the person from Naruto's memories.

"Yakushi Kabuto..." she murmured as the silver haired shinobi laid there with solid mud around his whole upper and lower body, effectively restraining him.

"Jiraiya..." she turned to the toad sanin, her lips curling upwards making him grin.

"So, how's the gift? We sure got ourselves a treasure huh? This here is Orochimaru's right hand man. Ready for some work Ibiki-san," Jiraiya uttered in an amused tone while the toad dispelled itself.

Turning towards the interrogation specialist, the hokage ordered.

"Ibiki, you know what to do. Make sure you extract everything you can from him. And don't shy away from killing him if you need to," a serious expression on her face as she shifted her cold eyes to an unconscious Kabuto.

'_Now let's see if you guys have some connection to Itachi or Danzou...'_

* * *

><p><strong>Once again, I sincerely apologize for the late update. :) <strong>

**I finally got a new laptop! XD So no more typing on the cell phone 'sighs in relief'...**

**And did you guys read the latest manga chapter? Man, I was totally surprised there. I'd never thought Kishi would go with Tobi being Obito, I had my speculations...but as far as Obito being Tobi goes, currently it creates plot holes. For one, when kyuubi attacked Kakashi was young, and so Obito should've been young too (if he was alive that is). Rather though, the 'masked man' fought Minato toe by toe and he looked as much older as Minato (judging by physical appearance at least), so that's one flaw. Another is that when Tobi claimed that he was the one to give Nagato the Rinnegan, which points in the direction that Tobi is someone really old, knowing about Rinnegan and all. Also Tobi spoke of Nagato being the THIRD sage of six paths, which means he knows who the second one was...yup, Tobi has to quite old, much older than Obito. **

**This speaks of much more than what is currently shown in the manga, and I think Kishi's gonna explain that in upcoming chapters. My bets are on Izuna Uchiha...this has to do with Izuna...but it could be another Uchiha as well. It...just can't be Obito, it could be that his body is currently being possessed or being controlled via genjutsu, like Tobi itself did with Yagura. **

****Also, when Tobi pulled off his mask in front of Kisame, the reaction of that guy was utter shock. It can only be if Kisame had recognized the person. And how on hell would he be able to recognize Obito? Obito wasn't any famous Uchiha or anything, he was just a chunin who died amidst the war and gave Kakashi the Sharingan (which is often ignored). This supports that it's someone else, someone really big. But...yeah, let's wait for more chapters. Lol XP**  
><strong>

**Let me know if you liked the chapter, so review guys! :D**

**N6023**


	48. Purifying My Cursed Angel

**HEY guys! Just wanted to say thank you for all your reviews, alerts and favourites. Hope you continue to enjoy this story! THANKS AGAIN! :D**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 48- Purifying My Cursed Angel<strong>

* * *

><p>Turning towards the interrogation specialist, the hokage ordered.<p>

"Ibiki, you know what to do. Make sure you extract everything you can from him. And don't shy away from killing him if you need to," a serious expression on her face as she shifted her cold eyes to an unconscious Kabuto.

'_Now let's see if you guys have some connection to Itachi or Danzou...'_

* * *

><p><strong>With Naruto: Around Afternoon<strong>

* * *

><p>The first thing that his hazy mind registered was the feeling of something soft and velvety on his lips as the blonde wriggled a bit, his head resting into something warm and comfortable.<p>

"Wake up...musuko..." just after hearing the first word he could tell it was his dear mother, and his lover.

Naruto scrunched up his eyebrows, his lower lip protruding out in a playful pout as he turned his head away from the direction of the voice, his eyes still closed.

"Jush...lemme...slee..." he was feeling so sleepy, the position in which he was laying was so comfortable that he never wanted to wake up again.

His lips curved upwards just a little bit upon hearing her chuckle. A short silence followed as he started to drift off when again he felt himself being nudged lightly while two hands began to massage his scalp lovingly.

"Oh Kami...just let me sleep pleaaase," he whined, turning on his side to bury his face into whatever his head was laying on, well he was sure it was too warm to be a pillow.

Kushina couldn't help but smile affectionately at the blonde sleeping in front of her, his head lying on Ayumi's lap, who too was gazing at Naruto with care and affection in her eyes.

"Heh, he is still...just a twelve year old child after all," the bijuu muttered softly, her fingers gently rubbing his scalp while the jinchuriki had buried his face into her lap, snuggling into her warmth.

"Yeah...even if he has to, a part of me hopes that he never grows up," Kushina spoke quietly, sitting on the edge of the king sized bed as moisture gathered in her violet orbs. Seeing her son sleeping so peacefully like a child, even after all the problems in the world he had to face, it brought her great joy, it reminded her that the damage Konoha did to him during his childhood was not permanent...that he was slowly healing- even after facing all the difficulties that kept coming around along the way.

The redhead was idly rubbing her son's shoulder tenderly, a lost look on her face. After having left Kabuto to Ibiki, she had resumed her duties, looking forward to her lunch with Naruto. Fortunately, the village being in the process of its reconstruction, she- as the Hokage had a lot of work to do since taking the mantle of the Fire Shadow; time had flown by quickly and she had found herself rushing back to the apartment to prepare lunch.

Oddly and to her surprise, she had found Naruto sleeping on Ayumi's lap. Kushina knew how her boy was usually hyperactive and for him to sleep through the afternoon was rare- she had expected for him to meet up with his friends and just do about any stuff except sleeping. Well Naruto did like to sleep, but he rarely slept during the day- it just showed how exhausted his body had gotten after facing against those Akatsuki nin.

"He's almost fully healed now," Ayumi murmured making Kushina nod.

"I can see that...you healed him when he was asleep?" the Uzumaki asked.

"Yep, but his own chakra played a big part in it too. This time, it didn't resist my chakra. In fact, his chakra worked with mine to heal every single damage...his healing rate has gotten to new levels, even for a jinchuriki," Ayumi stated with a serious expression while the blonde continued to snore lightly whereas Kushina had a surprised look on her face.

"His chakra...it did react negatively to your chakra before right? And now it worked with yours...kinda like his chakra has adapted to your presence...on its own?" she found it hard to believe while Ayumi nodded in agreement.

"Yeah...it's really something isn't it? Mito's chakra, we know that even though not white, had similar properties like Naruto-kun's chakra here. Her chakra could heal, bring selective genetic evolution...but it always opposed my chakra. I've never heard of a chakra whose properties, nature changes with time, a chakra which adapts itself accordingly," the bijuu articulated.

"Well it could be following Naruto's will too. Remember the state he achieved temporarily during the invasions? When he was dead set on saving jiji? Sochi's whole body was glowing so intensely, we all had to close our eyes," Kushina recalled.

"It does point towards the fact that Naruto-kun's chakra is following his own will, even if he himself is unaware of it," Ayumi uttered when the redhead stood up with a sigh.

"All we can do right now is speculate...let's just forget this topic for now. I'm sure Naruto will figure everything out himself," she said with a bright smile before walking towards the exit of the bedroom.

"Well lunch is about to be ready, wake him up will you?" Kushina vocalized, glancing over her shoulder as she smiled at the sleeping figure before leaving the room.

'_Okay...'_ Ayumi pondered as a mischievous grin took birth on her face.

'_I know the perfect way to wake him up.'_

Her hand began to sensually travel over his body, slowly inching towards the waist line of his shinobi pants when Kushina's head appeared around the corner of the slightly open door.

"And keep your hands above his waist you horny vixen!"

'_Damn!'_

* * *

><p><strong>With Naruto: An Hour Later: Streets of Konoha<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>Dammit...she's just hiding things from Mikoto-chan! I can't just do this...she has to know this, Itachi is her son,'<em> Naruto thought to himself with a frown, walking quietly through the bustling crowd. The blonde was lost in his thoughts, not noticing how most of the people were staring at him with respect and admiration- something he had longed for several years.

"Look it's that boy...the one who saved the village..."

"They say he's very close to our new hokage too."

"Well why won't they be close, they are the only two remaining survivors of the Uzumaki clan after all...of course they will stick with each other."

"I do find it a bit odd that Naruto and hokage-sama are living under the same roof."

"Well that remains a mystery for the whole village...but I suspect that with Naruto's special condition, she just wants to ensure his safety."

"It's quite astonishing that Kushina-sama allowed him to sign the elemental dragons summoning contract."

"On top of being an Uzumaki, he does have the legendary Rinnegan, the possessor of whom is said to be the messiah of this world...why won't she?"

Yet Naruto's mind was occupied somewhere else, the talk he had with Kushina a few minutes ago.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback<strong>_

* * *

><p>"Sochi...there's something we need to discuss," Kushina spoke seriously after finishing her plate while Naruto was still eating quietly, an unusual lethargic aura surrounding him with his eyes half-lidded.<p>

"Hmm?" his response was vague as the blonde continued to eat lazily making Kushina sigh.

"It's about Mikoto," this made him snap his head up making her smirk inwardly.

"What about Mikoto-chan?" Naruto asked with a confused expression, his tone concerned while Kushina clutched her black kunoichi pants.

"We didn't tell her about what happened between you and Itachi a week ago," she uttered with her hokage face as his eyes narrowed.

"I figured as much yesterday when Mikoto-chan was enjoying the party. I was going to ask you myself. Why didn't you tell her yet?" he asked in a solemn tone as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"She still has not been able to come over the fact that her whole clan was killed by her eldest son, that her youngest son was kidnapped by Orochimaru and that she has no family left whatsoever...she needs time before we can let her know what Itachi did to you," Kushina stated calmly, her eyes closed while Naruto could feel himself getting angry. This situation seemed familiar...it struck a chord with him.

"She deserves to know it. Itachi's her eldest son, she's the one first one who should have known about this!" the blonde exclaimed making the redhead stare at him in surprise before she narrowed her eyes.

"No she doesn't...Mikoto already has way too much on her mind. Knowing about this latest stunt will just break her. Don't you care about her feelings?" Kushina spoke loudly when he abruptly stood up in anger.

"I do care about her feelings! And that's why we shouldn't lie to her. What do you think she would feel after getting to know that we've been hiding things from her? She already doesn't trust the village...you probably told her about the elders ordering Itachi to kill the clan right?" Naruto asked with a grim expression making her shake her head.

"No...right now we ourselves aren't sure if the elders were under Danzo's control when they ordered Itachi to kill the clan. It is possible that Danzo had them under Koto Amatsukami to pressure jiji into giving the order. We just told that Danzo was the culprit, who strangely has gone missing since the invasions," she explained while he just kept staring at her.

"Still, we can't lie to her. We _have_ to tell her. Right now she may be living under a false hope of being reunited with Itachi. I hate lies...I hate hiding such important truths from people that they so deserve to know!" his voice got louder when Kushina stood up, herself getting angry.

"Voice down Uzumaki Naruto," her tone was final while the blonde averted his gaze, his fists clenched tightly.

"She deserves to know everything...she's not a kid who can't handle some heart breaking news, she's an extremely strong kunoichi. I know the pain and betrayal of having those truths hidden from me for the most part of my life," he spat bitterly, still gazing at the ground while Kushina's eyes widened in surprise.

'_Why can't you understand Naruto? The circumstances are different here,'_ the hokage thought in sadness.

"She may not need to know the whole story, but she does deserve to know about Itachi, she's his mother. I'm going to tell her...right now," Naruto stated firmly as he began to walk towards the exit door.

"Naruto stop!" Kushina exclaimed with narrowed eyes while the blonde just ignored her as he opened the door.

"As the hokage, it's my order Uzumaki Naruto. Refusal to follow it will result in your chakra being sealed to civilian levels for a month!" she spoke with authority making him stop dead in his tracks, the knob still in his hand. The jinchuriki stood there for several seconds, his head lowered with the knob being clutched _tightly _in his right hand.

"You just won't understand...you might not realize right now, but you will one day. Those agonizing truths don't hurt as much as the lies that hide those truths, the lies spoken by your most precious people," his voice was deathly cold.

Silence ensued for a few seconds as the blonde released the door knob...

WHAM!

...before _slamming_ the door shut, not noticing a few streams of tears gliding down Kushina's cheeks.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback End<strong>_

* * *

><p>'<em>She won't understand...how can she hide such important things from Mikoto-chan? They are best friends, Kaa-san can't be doing this. I'm sure Mikoto-chan's trust in the village is already dwindling, and with this latest stunt, there is a chance that she will follow the same path as her ancestors,'<em> Naruto thought, his mind all foggy as he continued to walk amongst the crowd. His eyes became half-lidded, a poignant look taking birth in them as he walked a bit sluggishly.

'_Why does this has to be so complicated? Everything seems so upside down in my life right now...'_ a sigh escaped his lips as he accidentally bumped into someone, muttering sorry before continuing on his path- not having noticed as to how that passerby had respectfully apologized to him with a smile.

'_I'm under the clan restoration act for the Uzumaki clan and have to take upto a minimum of ten wives...can I even handle that much? I mean, will this completely destroy the element of love in my life...just picking out wives and having kids without any feelings? Heh, what the fuck am I thinking? Am I even ready to be a father now?_' the jinchuriki chuckled bitterly.

'_And then there's the matter of Akatsuki being on my ass, not only due to Ayumi but also due to my Rinnegan now. I am known as a prodigy throughout the village. I'm twelve years old and at about jounin level currently. Apparently that's still not enough...I got lucky with Deidara this time, I'm sure the rest of the Akatsuki members can just squash me easily. And what about their leader, the one having the Rinnegan and being at the third level currently? How am I supposed to face an S-rank criminal, who has the Rinnegan on top of that?' _things just were looking more and more hopeless.

Naruto knew he was beginning to crumble under the tremendous pressure; he already had been pushing his body to its limits in his training ever since the activation of the Rinnegan. What more was he supposed to do?He knew he should not be feeling down, rather encouraging himself to keep going...

'_...but there's only so much I can go forward with determination. Damn it...just...why couldn't my life be simple for once? I have people who love me, but there's just not enough time I can spend with them considering the whirlwind my life has become lately. I was so happy when I got the Rinnegan a month ago...but now, it seems nothing but a burden to me,'_ he didn't why he was feeling so down. Maybe it was the discussion with Kushina he just had, maybe things just weren't looking up for him, or maybe he was just tired of being under so much pressure.

He had given his all during the invasions- to save everyone. He had given his all against the recent skirmish with Akatsuki and Orochimaru...and every time he had to endure so much pain and stress- both physical and mental, it was breaking him from the inside.

'_Ah dammit, why am I being so negative? I have to keep going...no matter what. If not for my sake, but for the ones who care about me and want me to live,'_ another sigh escaped Naruto's lips as he sifted his right hand through his blonde locks.

'_Then there's the mystery surrounding Itachi-nii...just why...even though what he said made sense to a certain degree, still, my heart refuses to believe it. And if Itachi-nii was lying back there...why would he? What could be the reason so grave that he had to lie to all of us, and stab me with a kunai coated with deadly poison? It...it makes me think if he even cared about me at all. He just sounded so cold...so distant at that time...he really was trying to kill me back then. Why? What are you trying to achieve?'_ shaking his head to get rid of the stressful thoughts, Naruto's eyes widened in surprise when he found himself now standing in front of Mikoto's apartment, not knowing how'd he get there in the first place.

Mikoto's apartment was in the same district as his own, which was one of the lavish parts of the village, also sporting Tsunade and Shizune's apartment. It baffled him as to how he was just walking in circles around his own district to stop in front of the Uchiha's house- who understandably had chosen not to live in her clan's district.

'_Guess I should just go and see her...'_ the whiskered blonde thought with a sigh as he climbed up the stairs at a hesitant pace- currently wearing a combination of a light grey sweat shirt with black cargo pants.

Now standing in front of the door, Naruto had an uncertain look on his face, his index finger touching the bell's button beside the door.

'_Should I really meet her right now? I don't think I can talk to her knowing that I'm hiding such heavy truths from her. Mikoto-chan trusts me so much, it feels as if I'm betraying her. I already promised her that I'm going to give her a meeting with Sasuke, and now lying about Itachi-nii like that?'_ the blonde sighed as he began to retract his hand back.

'_Maybe so-'_

"When are you planning on ringing the bell handsome?" the blonde snapped his head to notice Mikoto standing beside him, an amused smile on her beautiful face while she was holding several plastic bags.

"M-Mi-Mikoto-chan..." Naruto couldn't believe he stuttered twice, but he guessed he was that much startled- having been completely lost in his own world for her to sneak up on him so easily. Her smile dropped a bit upon noticing his reaction.

"Let's get in Naruto-kun," she spoke softly while the blonde averted his gaze, already knowing that she had picked up on his troubled state. The raven haired Uchiha was wearing a simple, plain sky blue skirt with a tight, full-sleeved dark blue T-shirt- accentuating her curves.

Noticing her fiddling with her keys along with holding the bags, he gently took the bags from her, offering her a small smile as she smiled back appreciatively.

"So, how was your day?" she asked as the duo entered the apartment, getting rid of their footwear by the mat.

"Nothing much, just slept through it. You?" Naruto asked in a low tone as he walked into the living room as he set the bags on the couch.

"No missions for me today, so I just sorted out the things in the apartment and filled up the food supplies," Mikoto spoke as she strolled to the kitchen while the blonde plopped on the couch with a jerk, a sigh escaping his lips as he sat in silence.

Naruto gazed at the carpet absent-mindedly, his elbows propped on his thighs as he found himself again delving into his thoughts.

'_Should I tell her? But...I can't. Kaa-san seemed so desperate in stopping me from spilling out the truth...I don't care about the orders but...what should I do?'_ he was pulled out of his trance upon feeling his shoulder being nudged lightly.

"Naruto-kun..." the jinchuriki turned his head to notice Mikoto sitting by his side, a concerned look on her face as she offered him a glass of water. Smiling weakly, he took the glass before drinking it down in one gulp, exhaling deeply as he wiped his chin with the sleeve of his sweat shirt.

"So, what's troubling you?" she asked softly, a comforting hand on the blonde's shoulder while he just shook his head.

"Nothing...everything's fine. What about you? How are you feeling?" Naruto asked, turning to stare into her somewhat surprised black orbs.

Mikoto's lips slowly curled upwards as she burst into a small cute giggle, nudging him in the ribs with her right elbow in a playful way.

"So, you came to check on me huh? My..." Mikoto trailed as she tilted her head to rest it on his shoulder, her arm encircling around his waist.

"Little Naru-chan has grown so much..." she sighed with a small smile while Naruto lifted his left arm to wrap around her opposite shoulder, pulling her in. Mikoto exhaled contentedly as she closed her eyes, revelling in the blonde's warmth- a comforting silence ensuing between the two.

Dim sun rays coming through the window was lighting the living room as both of them sat in relative silence, only the clicking sounds of the clock reaching their ears.

"I wish I had never grown up," Naruto spoke as he leaned back, pulling Mikoto back with him. Finding his tone to be strange, she turned her head to stare at him.

"What's wrong Naruto-kun?" she asked gently, but in a firm tone as he tightened his hold on her shoulder.

"I...don't know, I guess I'm just feeling down and all. It will go away I guess," he muttered, having cut his mental connection with Ayumi a while ago back in the streets. Slowly lifting her head, Mikoto's warm hand found its way on his cheek as she looked at him in worry.

"Naruto-kun, you are feeling a lot of pressure aren't you?" she questioned as his eyes opened in surprise, the blonde now looking at her as she smiled knowingly.

"You can tell me anything honey," she uttered, a warm and affectionate look in her eyes, making the jinchuriki melt under them as he leaned forward to hug her tightly- taking her by surprise somewhat.

Mikoto hugged him back as she rubbed his back soothingly while he just stayed quiet.

'_Should I tell her?'_ he pondered before opening his mouth.

"Mikoto-chan I...Ita..." Naruto again closed his eyes as he tried to tell her the truth.

"Naruto-kun, what is it?" the Uchiha matriarch asked softly as he leaned back to stare into her concerned orbs. The blonde felt his cheeks being heated at their proximity as he averted his gaze, quickly aware of the fact that just how beautiful and an attractive woman Mikoto really was.

"It's just that with the Akatsuki being on my back and me having to push my body during the training past its limits is taking a toll on me. And after facing a member of Akatsuki- Deidara yesterday and getting out of it by a lucky draw, I now know the difference between our strengths," Naruto lowered his head into his palms as he sighed lightly.

"I guess I just need to kick back a little," he murmured before feeling his chin being lifted gently. Mikoto offered him an understanding smile, her eyes shimmering with affection and care as she leaned forward to wrap her arms around his torso, her head resting against his chest.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, you are a strong person. I've watched as you kept ignoring the villagers and continue to march forward. I know you'll do it. This is just a down phase you're going through, everybody has ups and downs in their lives, so you'll just need to take it easy for a while. You've always been so excited about training and all, and the fact that you're dreading the upcoming training you have to undergo is a serious issue," she spoke, her melodic voice soothing his nerves as he just held her.

"Here's what we'll do. We have to train you, but we will do it in a fun way. I'll talk to Kushina, I'm sure we can sort something out. We'll have you train the way you enjoy the most. I think I know what the problem is here. But just kick back and relax, you have earned it. Also, there's also the match you promised me remember?" she playfully pinched his chest, inwardly admiring as to how well-built the blonde was. Naruto smiled at her warmly as a chuckle escaped his lips.

"Yeah, I remember that. I'm excited about that too," he replied as she leaned back, smiling at him.

"Thanks for lifting me up Mikoto-chan, I needed that," the jinchuriki said gratefully, an embarrassed smile on his face as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Heh, anything for my Naru-chan," she spoke with a grin, ruffling his hair playfully as he pouted at her, making her giggle. A mischievous glint suddenly entered his oceanic blue orbs as he grinned devilishly at her before diving towards her.

Mikoto squealed as she was pushed to her back on the couch while the blonde began to tickle her mercilessly at her sides. The Uchiha matriarch, being extremely ticklish, a secret very few knew along with Naruto- burst out giggling, her breath coming out in short pants.

"Na...Naru...ahahahahaha! Naru...Naruto!...S-Stop...it! AhahahhaHAHAHAHAHA!" her melodious laughter began to echo throughout her apartment as the jinchuriki sunk his fingers into her sides, tickling her while she flailed her legs uncontrollably, unable to control her reflex action.

"Narutooooooo...ahahahahaah!" she screamed out in laughter after a few seconds when he stopped, his head buried into the couch beside her shoulder as she panted to catch her breath, occasional giggles escaping her lips with the whiskered blonde chuckling with her.

"Oh...ahehe...y-you'll never change...you and y-your pranks..." she spoke with a giggle, her eyes closed as she panted lightly with Naruto above her, his knees placed on the couch on both sides of her with his face buried into her shoulder.

Both of them stayed in that position, the blonde finding the sounds of her breathing soothing.

"Thank you Mikoto-chan...I don't know what I'd do without you," he muttered, his mouth close to her left ear as her lips curled upwards in a serene smile.

"No problem Naruto-kun...anything for you," she spoke softly, her eyes closed as she gently wrapped her arms around his neck- surprising him.

"M-Mikoto-chan?" the blonde questioned as he tried to lean back, his eyes a bit wide when she pulled him back in.

"Just...stay here with me Naruto-kun, please?" her voice was soft, but pleading; it actually shocked Naruto. She sounded so frail.

Having a scarlet blush on his face, the jinchuriki nevertheless relaxed himself- his body now partially lying on top of her soft frame. Mikoto had him clutched to herself gently, but firmly, her eyes closed with her arms wrapped around his neck- seeking comfort in the blonde on top of her.

Both of them stayed quiet, providing each other the much needed physical comfort- no more words being exchanged between the two.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Hokage's Office: An Hour Later<strong>

* * *

><p><em>Knock Knock!<em>

"Enter," Kushina ordered, currently going over some documents as the door opened for two familiar figures to walk in.

"Hokage-same," the red head lifted her head as she leaned back into her chair.

"Ah...Kakashi, Sakura," she spoke seriously, briefly eyeing the bruised pink haired kunoichi standing in front of her.

"So, how's her training going?" the godaime asked, now resting her eyes on the copy ninja while Sakura stood there, a nervous look on her face.

"I must say she's one quick learner when she puts her mind to it. With what you have in mind for Naruto-kun's training hokage-sama, I'm sure you'll notice the results," he spoke, glancing at Sakura with a smile as her cheeks lighted in an embarrassed blush while at the same time, she wondered about what they were discussing regarding her blonde teammate's training.

"I see..." Kushina trailed when Sakura interjected.

"What do you mean by Naruto's training? Is he alright now hokage-sama?" she asked, concern visible in her green orbs making Kushina smile at her. Even though the redhead was irked by Sakura treating her son roughly during his days at the academy as well as when team seven was formed, she understood that the pink haired genin was just a child then- an immature child whose world revolved around impressing a certain raven haired genin. Now looking at Sakura, Kushina saw a matured kunoichi, one who had great potential, pretty impressive talent if she was able to extract those words from Kakashi.

"Yes, he's alright now. They had a run in with Orochimaru along with two Akatsuki members. Hinata and Tayuya are still recovering while as you know, when it comes to Naruto, injuries never last too long. He's fully healed now," she informed while Sakura had an even more worried look on her face.

"He actually fought those S-rank monsters? I did see Orochimaru in action once..." her voice trailed as she remembered that day a month ago, when Naruto had fought Orochimaru for them in the Forest of Death.

"And Akatsuki is said to be even more dangerous than that guy..." Kushina's eyes softened as Sakura's gaze lowered to the floor. She understood the kunoichi's concern regarding her teammate. Not everyone's teammate was a jinchuriki...not every day one's teammate had to face situations like these.

"Don't worry Sakura. Naruto is a strong person, and that's the reason we are planning on training him extra harder. We can't do it without your help, he can't do it without his friend's help," the red head uttered with a smile making the teen kunoichi look at her in confusion.

"What do yo-"

POOF!

...

"You called?" being startled by a rather cold voice, a bright smile took birth on Sakura's face as she stared at her blonde teammate.

"Naruto!" the blonde turned his head to notice his teammate and sensei, his lips curling upwards.

"Sakura-chan...Kakashi-sensei..." he muttered with a diminutive smile, the cold look in his eyes instantly evaporating.

"Yo!" the silver haired jounin greeted with his eye curved upwards in an 'U', indicating his smile.

"How are you?! I heard you were badly injured when you brought Tsunade-sama back," Sakura asked with a smile making him scratch the back of his head.

"Well you know Sakura-chan, when it comes to me, injuries never last too long," he verbalized with a sheepish grin as both Kakashi and Sakura's eyebrows lifted in surprise, the duo now glancing between their hokage and the blonde.

"Huh...what's wrong?" Naruto asked with a confused expression while Kushina was trying to fight down the embarrassed blush on her face.

"She said those exact words when we asked her about you- 'when it comes to him, injuries never last too long'..." Kakashi pointed towards Kushina with his index finger, darkening the shade of her blush while Naruto glanced at her discreetly.

"Anyway..." the blonde started, ignoring the awkward coincidence as he turned towards Kushina, his demeanour taking a one-eighty turn.

"Why did you call me here hokage-sama?" a cold edge to his voice making Kakashi wonder as to what had happened between the two.

Kushina however sighed inwardly as she composed herself.

"Yes well, first of all, seeing your performance in the chunin exams along with the essential part you played during the invasions- Uzumaki Naruto, I, as the godaime hokage of Konohagakure, hereby promote you to the rank of chunin," Kushina declared, a certain hint of pride in her voice while Kakashi couldn't help but smile proudly, already having predicted this.

Sakura too couldn't wipe the bright smile on her face as she turned to her teammate, who had a somewhat surprised look on his face.

"Hey, congratulations you dummy!" the pink haired kunoichi cheered as the jinchuriki composed himself, a small smile curving his lips as he glanced at Sakura.

"Thanks Sakura-chan..."

"Now I don't like breaking this to you, but with Naruto here being promoted to chunin and the other member of team seven missing, the original team seven is being officially disbanded from here on out," the godaime hokage broke through making Sakura and Naruto's eyes widen in shock.

"Why?!" surprisingly, it was both Naruto and Sakura who exclaimed simultaneously.

Kushina closed her eyes as she intertwined her fingers in front of her lips, a grave expression on her face.

"I already explained the reason. With Uchiha Sasuke missing, team seven is already incomplete as it is. And with Naruto becoming a chunin, and taking in account his special conditions, it's better if I put him somewhere else, a squad more suited for him," Kushina articulated making Naruto narrow his eyes.

"I can work pretty well with Sakura-chan, we have done plenty of missions together. I don't see why you can't just fill in a new temporary member for the time being," he argued making Sakura nod, who looked to be a bit panicked.

"Naruto's right hokage-sama, you can just fill in a new temporary member. And with him being a chunin, he can be the squad leader on our missions with our squad containing three members," the teen kunoichi spoke making the hokage shake her head.

"No, you're not understanding the situation here Sakura. With the Akatsuki becoming more active now regarding Naruto here, I have to place him in a squad much stronger than the current one. I understand your sentiments regarding your original team but this can't be helped. Besides, I'm planning on putting Tsuchi Kin and Tayuya with you on team seven. I have other things planned for Naruto here," she spoke in a definite tone while Kakashi stayed quiet, already suspecting that this was coming.

"But-"

"It's alright Sakura-chan, it's not like we won't meet each other ever again," Naruto intervened with a small reassuring smile making her nod, a sad look on her face. Kushina smiled at her son's maturity when the copy ninja spoke.

"I agree with hokage-sama Sakura. You know about his condition, he does need a stronger squad with him. Besides, you being teamed up with Kin and Tayuya will make up a good squad. I know you and Kin have some history, but as a kunoichi, you have to get over that. You are mostly a taijutsu specialist with excellent chakra control while Tayuya has a great deal of talent in genjutsu according to what hokage-sama says. Kin has shown great potential in ninjutsu along with her sound related techniques...so I'm sure you three will form a great team," he explained making her nod, a gloomy look on her face as she clenched her fists while Naruto sighed heavily.

'_Great...now I'm no longer a part of team seven. What else?'_

"Alright, now moving onto other things. Naruto, you are to report at training ground three tomorrow morning at eight, don't be late."

"Can I ask you why hokage-sama?" the blonde questioned with a raised eyebrow, a certain hint of mocking in his tone while Sakura too could feel the tension between the two now.

'_Is...something going on between these two?'_

Kushina sighed in frustration as she spoke in a neutral tone.

"You'll know when you go there. You're dismissed now, you stay here Kakashi and Sakura," Kushina stated when the blonde turned to his former team now.

"See ya later Sakura-chan, sensei."

POOF!

* * *

><p><strong>Hokage Monument: With Naruto: Half An Hour Later<strong>

* * *

><p>'<em>Man...this place sure is a stress buster. Every time I come here...'<em> the blonde thought as he closed his eyes, enjoying the light cool breeze ruffling his body. He was currently sitting on the yondaime's head, leaned back with his hands supporting his body as he sat there casually.

"_Naruto-kun...are you feeling alright now?"_ Ayumi spoke in concern, the connection now established between the two as the blonde nodded.

"_Yeah, I'm feeling better now. Thanks for understanding earlier Ayumi-chan,"_ he replied telepathically with a smile.

"_No problem...just keep that smile on your face. I don't want you feeling down and being all sad...it's just not you,"_ she spoke playfully making him chuckle lightly.

"_Yo Whisker-kun! What's up?!"_

The jinchuriki's eyes widened in shock upon hearing a familiar voice telepathically, although through a different link. His right hand automatically lifted to touch the Uzushio seal on his side neck.

Feeling a presence behind him, the blonde whizzed his head to find the grinning figure of a familiar purple haired kunoichi.

"Dango-chan..." his muttered under his breath, his lips slowly curling upwards into a bright grin as he stood up a bit unsteadily.

"_So, how's it going whisker-kun?"_ Anko again spoke telepathically in a teasing tone as she wiggled her eyebrows making him shake his head at her antics, laughing lightly at her.

"Damn you..." he spoke before walking towards her in a rushed pace, quickly engulfing her form in a tight hug.

"W-Whoa..." Anko exhaled, taken aback as he hugged her affectionately.

"Damn I missed you so much," the blonde articulated with a sigh making her smile.

"Of course you missed me, I'm just that awesome," Anko grinned when he leaned back to gaze into her eyes.

Anko found herself again surprised as she stared into his mesmerizing oceanic blue orbs- they were so full of happiness. She couldn't help but subconsciously ask herself- he was that happy to see her?

Her eyes widened a bit when he leaned forward to capture her lips in a chaste kiss, the blonde pouring his love for her into it as she too gradually closed her eyes- feeling herself melt under his arms.

"I...really...missed you..." Naruto spoke in between his kisses, nibbling on her lower lip as he pulled her in through her waist.

'_What's gotten into him? Heh...not that I'm complaining...'_ Anko inwardly thought with a smirk as she deepened the kiss, pushing her soft lips into his, applying more pressure as their lips moved against each heatedly now. Her hands were sifting through his spiky locks as she moaned lightly into the kiss.

"Me...too..." she moaned lightly, licking his lips fervently as the blonde snaked his tongue out, engaging in a tongue battle with her.

Naruto's hands slowly went down her back, massaging her curvaceous globes of flesh hungrily as she broke the kiss with a moan, panting lightly while her eyes were closed- their noses touching each other.

"My apartment..." she exhaled heavily, their lips barely touching each other with their foreheads touching each other as she grinded her lower region lightly with his in desire.

"I can't wait Anko," Naruto spoke in need, his eyes half lidded in desire and lust as he gazed at her. The previous month had been so busy for him, he hadn't gotten enough time to spend with her. And now with this break after having brought Tsunade back, he wanted to make the most of it.

He wanted to spend as much time with his loved ones as he could.

* * *

><p><strong>Anko's Apartment: Several Minutes Later (Lemon Warning)<strong>

* * *

><p>"Anko..." Naruto groaned in need, placing butterfly kisses down her exposed neck as he hovered above her, the purple haired kunoichi sprawled on her bed.<p>

Anko however could do nothing but moan, immensely enjoying his ministrations as she squirmed beneath him. Her trench coat was already discarded off, leaving her in her fishnet as the blonde gently cupped her left tit, his knee rubbing against her lower region gently.

Both had taken special precaution of drawing the curtains, locking the doors as well establishing a visibility barrier around her bedroom- meant for a certain peeping pervert.

"Nah...rutooo," she moaned while panting lightly, her hands clutching the bed sheets tightly as he nibbled on the nape of her neck, giving her a hickey.

Although she may act like an open pervert in front of Naruto outside, however, inside, she was the same woman wanting attention from the man of her dreams. This was the moment she had dreamed of for so long, she had waited long enough.

"My...you are so sensitive," Naruto murmured with a chuckle, making her chuckle back as she panted to catch her breath.

"Y-You're underestimating me...whisker-chan," she mocked when the blonde found himself pinned to the bed in a flash- their positions reversed.

His eyes were widened as now Anko sat on his waist, a predatory grin on her face as she grinded her pelvis against her hardened member, which was straining his cargo pants. She licked her lips, trailing her hands over his well-built torso, admiring his muscular cuts.

Naruto however, was not so surprised to see her taking charge, he had suspected her to be the dominant type after all.

Grabbing the hem of her fishnet, she slowly pulled it upwards, giving him a tantalizing view of her D-cups as they jiggled with her bounds.

'_Damn it...she's just so...'_

"Like the view?" Anko asked with a smirk, deliberately cupping her tits in front of him, the fishnet already on the floor now.

"Come here you!" Naruto growled with narrowed eyes as he pulled her after grabbing her wrists.

"Ahhh..." she moaned as he began to roughly grope her breasts, sucking on her left nipple hungrily when she put her hand on his cheek softly.

"Naruto-kun..." she called softly making him lean back to look at her, his hands still groping her fleshy globes. The blonde however stopped at seeing the look on her face.

There was no playful grin stretching her lips, no mischievous glint in her eyes, no taunting smirk; she had a delicate look on her face, the look of a woman offering her virginity to the one she loved the most in her world, like she was giving him something very precious to her. Right then, for the first time since knowing her, Naruto saw a whole new Anko, he saw a whole new woman.

"Please...be gentle..." those words spoke volumes to him, the moisture in her half-lidded eyes...he had never seen this side of her. He didn't how she transitioned from a sexy and teasing woman to an affectionate and gentle lover so quickly, but seeing this side of her for the first time, he couldn't complain.

He wanted to store this picture in his mind forever, that beautiful look on her face, her lovely eyes- he never wanted to forget this moment.

Gently leaving her breast, he lifted his head to cup her cheek tenderly as she leaned into his touch.

"I'm sorry Anko...I know how much this means to you...I love you," Naruto spoke with a warm smile, his Rinnegan activated as he burnt the look on her face in his mind.

A few tears escaped the confines of Anko's eyelids as she put her hand on his cheek, clenching her eyes shut when a choked sob escaped her lips.

After being betrayed by Orochimaru, after having been ridiculed by the villagers for so long, she'd never thought that anyone would ever love her romantically. For Naruto, someone whom she loved with all her heart, to return her feelings...those were tears of happiness.

"Hey...shhh, stop crying baby...I promise that I'll never leave you, I will always love you, that's a promise. You know Uzumaki Naruto doesn't break his promises right?" he whispered soothingly in her ear, slowly making her lay back on the bed as he planted an affectionate kiss on her nose.

Anko's eyes were still clenched shut, more tears cascading down her cheeks as another sob escaped her lips.

"Hush...no one's going to leave you alone ever again. I'll protect you from the pain of loneliness...we both know how agonizing it is," Naruto whispered in a melancholic tone while she covered her eyes with her palms, her sobs getting louder at that.

"Nha...Narutoo!" she sobbed, her body shaking up due to her uncontrollable sobs as she broke down right there. Naruto smiled at her sadly, gently rubbing her shoulders. He knew those were tears of happiness, sobs of joy...she was so elated that she had broken down, she couldn't contain the rush of those positive emotions.

"Let's stop crying, we've cried long enough. Let's turn those cries into joyous squeals shall we, into pleasurable moans?" he chuckled beside her ear, his hand now slowly moving to cup her breasts gently- the jinchuriki inwardly cursing himself for trying to be rough with her earlier.

Anko's sobs began to subside lightly as he pressed her breasts, kneading them into circular motion tenderly with his fingers occasionally pinching them making her moan lightly.

It was strange, her sobs being combined with her light moans...but she wasn't stopping him, she wanted to go on, to leave her previous pain behind her.

"Let's show that bastard, the whole world that we can heal any wound with love," he again whispered, his other hand going lower, past the waistline of her panties to gently rub her bare glistening vaginal lips.

"Narutoo..." she sniffed, this side of her so foreign to Naruto as he kept staring at her the whole time, his fingers doing their magic. Her palms were still covering her eyes. Leaning down, the blonde flicked his tongue over her right erect nipple making her go stiff. He smirked at her before engulfing the rosy bud with his mouth, sucking on it gently as her back arched in pleasure.

'_So her nipples are sensitive huh?'_

His hands still kneading her other breast along with rubbing her pussy lips, he lightly bit on her nipple making her moan loudly in between her light hiccups, making the jinchuriki chuckle lightly.

"Here...show me your face," he murmured, gently taking her hands off her face when his fingers went inside her vagina, sloshing around in her wet insides.

"Ahhhh...Nah...Naru..."Naruto smiled at her warmly as he gazed at her face, her eyebrows contorted in pleasure while her cheeks were stained with tears.

"I...I can't wait..." she panted out, her hands gently holding his forearms as her pulled her panties down, sliding them all the way through her legs, over her feet.

"As you wish...Anko-hime," he whispered, now leaning up to plant a kiss on her forehead as she sniffed lightly.

"Naruto..." she spoke, now opening her bleary eyes to gaze at him with nothing with warm affection and abundant love.

"Take me, become one with me...p-please, purify me," she uttered lightly, her voice so soft and melodic.

The blonde smiled at her warmly as he cupped her cheeks, his hardened junior lined up against her pelvis.

'_I never knew you had a side like this...it's so...it makes you that much more beautiful...'_ he thought, his own eyes half lidded.

"You ready?" he asked almost inaudibly as she nodded immediately.

"Have been for a long time...," there was a sense of urgency in her voice, she really couldn't wait.

Naruto kept staring into her eyes as he pushed himself in, his eyes getting closed as his manhood slowly entered her warm and slippery insides.

"A-Anko..."

"Ahhh...Naruuu..." Anko moaned lightly as her grip tightened on his forearms, her hymen already broken due to her being a kunoichi.

He continued to push gently before entering her, completely filling her up as the blonde controlled himself due to Anko's sake, her tight insides giving him unbelievable amounts of pleasure.

"Move...c'mon...m-move now," she whispered, herself moving her hips. Not needing further encouragement, Naruto pulled out his meat stick before again pushing it in. The blonde began to build up a steady pace, making sure she was getting comfortable.

"Hahhh...yess...c'mon...faster N-Naru..." Anko moaned in pleasure, her hands tightly clenching the bed sheets, her purple hair sprawled open on the bed as he increased his pace.

"Nah...ruto..." she muttered, lifting her hands to cup his cheeks as he continued to push into her.

"L-Love me...purify me, make me forget all the pain...make me yours...never let me go!" she exclaimed loudly, streams of pearly liquid flowing down her soft and smooth cheeks.

"A-Anko...I love you..." Naruto exclaimed, his eyes closed in pleasure as he began to slam into her, wet and erotic sounds of flesh slapping against each other filling the room.

"S-Say it again..." she panted out, all the while moaning as he filled her insides repeatedly.

"I love you!" he exclaimed, now grabbing her waist to get control over his thrusts, both of their bodies now covered in a sheen layer of sweat.

"A-Again..."

"I love you...I l-love you...I love you Anko!" he exclaimed again and again, making her lips curl upwards as her toes twisted in pleasure.

"I...l-love you too...ha-harder...faster Narutoooo..." she moaned loudly, now panting heavily as he went at full pace, sky-rocketing her pleasure meter.

Naruto leaned down to claim her lips, kissing her passionately as Anko wrapped her arms around his neck while he continued to thrust into her.

"T-Thank you...thank you so m-much..." she whispered through her panting and moaning into his ear, her eyes shut tightly as the inevitable tears of happiness fell down her chin. Both of their bodies rocked with each other in rhythm as they neared their ends.

"A-Anko..."

"Nharhutoh...I'm...cumminnnnnnggggg!"

* * *

><p><strong>(Lemon Ends) <strong>

**Next Morning: Around Eight: Training Ground Three**

* * *

><p>Walking leisurely through the opened gate, Naruto entered the third training ground- where team seven was officially formed.<p>

He looked around himself, currently wearing his usual battle attire minus the trench coat as the blonde enjoyed the greenery around him.

'_It's been a while since I came here,'_ he thought, now walking through a paved path towards the main clearing. A blush suddenly tinted his cheeks when he remembered as to what had happened last night upon him returning to his apartment.

'_Kaa-san sure doesn't give up...'_ he pondered with a sigh, the blush still not leaving his face.

"_Hehe...still can't believe that Kushina can be a pervert huh?"_ Ayumi commented from inside as he just ignored her, continuing to walk towards the clearing when he picked up some strange sounds...and familiar voices.

'_What are they...doing here?'_ Naruto's pace quickened as he jumped on a branch using chakra, speeding towards the clearing.

Thup!

Reaching the edge, landing on a branch high above the ground, the blonde had his eyes widened in surprise as he stared at the scene below him.

"Yosh Gai-sensei! We will make Naruto-kun's youthful fires burn brighter!"

"Atta boy Lee! Your youthfulness prevails on this youthful morning!"

"Again Tenten...you need to try harder."

"Damn it N-Neji...gimme a break..."

...

"Hey get your fucking mutt away from me!"

"He has a name you bitch, it's Akamaru!"

"Oh calm down Tayuya-chan, Kiba-kun."

"Jeez Tayuya-chan, so typical of you to get irritated just by a dog."

"Shut up Kin-chan!"

"Hey I told you it's not just a dog, his name is AKAMARU!"

"Shut the fuck up you son of a bitch!"

"Why you little..."

"Kiba, I don't see why you are offended by that statement from Tayuya-san. Why? It's because according to the native language of your clan, you _are_ basically a...son of a bitch..."

"Shut up Shino, some teammate you are dammit!"

"Hey I like you bug boy, you're at least better than the bitch boy."

...

Buzzz!

"Waaah! Get those fucking insects away from me!"

"Tayuya-chan...you are just hopeless..."

"Ah Shino-kun, please calm down! She didn't mean to call you bug boy!"

They were all there, ALL of them were standing there.

Naruto stood frozen; he couldn't believe it, he had instantly pieced it together, he couldn't believe how far Kushina was going for him.

Lee and Gai were acting like usual, warming up with their crazy antics. Kiba, Shino, Tenten, Neji, Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, Sakura, Kin; they were all there- even Hinata and Tayuya had shown up. The whole of rookie eleven...all his friends...

Even their jounin sensei- Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma were there. Most of them were standing idly as if they were waiting for someone- Naruto knew exactly who they were waiting for.

'_Whoah...so this is what she was talking about...hmm, nice idea Kushina,' _Ayumi thought with a small smile as she stared at the scene through Naruto.

The jinchuriki however went stiff when he felt a familiar pair of arms wrap around his stomach gently from behind.

"Keep your friends close Naruto-koi," Kushina's shadow clone whispered in his ear as she kissed his cheek before taking her leave.

POOF!

* * *

><p><strong>Here's where we pause for now. Really hope that you liked this chapter. :)<strong>

**Ohkay! As I said before, I'm also going draw artwork for my fics, though for the time being they are mostly going to be black 'n' white, like manga, and not colored. I've already posted them on dA. Here's the link to my profile there- (Warning you that when I started my drawing was average and it improved over time, so the latest ones are really good I think :))**

**n6023 . deviantart . com (Omit the spaces though)**

**Just for reference, the current image cover for this fic is one of the pics I drew for CoMSW :)**

**_If you just want the direct links to the drawings, they're up at the bottom of my profile page under the section 'FAN ART!'._ :P**

**Anyway, reviews would be really appreciated. Thanks again for your support. :D**

**N6023**


	49. A Decision I Regret?

**Sorry sorry sorry! I apologize for the late update...and to rectify that, this chapter is really large (at least for my standards), so I hope you like it. :P**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 49- A Decision I Regret?<strong>

* * *

><p><em>'Whoah...so this is what she was talking about...hmm, nice idea Kushina,' <em>Ayumi thought with a small smile as she stared at the scene through Naruto.

The jinchuriki however went stiff when he felt a familiar pair of arms wrap around his stomach gently from behind.

"Keep your friends close Naruto-koi," Kushina's shadow clone whispered in his ear as she kissed his cheek before taking her leave.

POOF!

The blonde sighed as he stood there, at that moment memories of the previous night hitting him.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback- Naruto's Apartment: Last Night<strong>_

* * *

><p>Naruto currently stood outside the door to his apartment, a serious look on his face.<p>

'_I so don't want to face her tonight...'_ he thought bitterly as his right hand clutched the door knob, the blonde channelling his chakra through it when an unlocking click was heard from the other side.

"_Oh c'mon Naruto-kun, she's your mother and lover. There's no need to avoid her, just go and talk to her,"_ Ayumi spoke with a sigh.

"_No, I guess I'll just ignore the topic for tonight. She must have been tired after coming back from work," _he answered back before hearing her chuckle.

"_Hehe...so you care for her even while being angry with her, such a cute lover you are Naruto-kun,"_ the bijuu teased making him sigh.

"_Shut up."_

Putting a frown on his face, the blonde entered his home slowly, and quietly. Closing the door gently, he placed his civilian sneakers by the mat. Walking quietly into the dimly lit living room, the blonde scanned his surroundings before sighing to himself.

'_Guess she turned in early tonight,'_ he pondered to himself in relief, now gazing at the door to the bedroom. The blonde began to walk towards the kitchen when he heard the bedroom door being opened.

Naruto cursed under his breath as he entered the kitchen, trying to ignore her completely.

"Naru-kun, where were you?" the jinchuriki was surprised at the concern in her soft voice. Drinking down the water, he set down the glass before exiting the kitchen.

"Mikoto-chan's place," his response was dull as the whiskered blonde entered the living room.

"Oh..."

Naruto froze for a second as he stared at her form. Kushina was standing there with only a towel covering her. Her frame was wet, water droplets falling on the floor as she gazed at him with a sad look on her face. It seemed as if she had come running out of shower upon his return.

Her large breasts were almost popping out of the towel, her wet and smooth skin glowing under the dim lights of the living room.

"Why were you standing outside for so long?" the blonde actually faltered in his step at her sudden question, an embarrassed blush on his face.

'_She must have located me via the Uzushio seal,'_ he realized while Ayumi was chuckling from inside at the scene going on.

"I'm going to bed. I've already eaten at Mikoto-chan's place," Naruto replied with a frown, ignoring the question as he began to walk towards the door, just where she was standing.

"Oh...okay, do you want anything else?" Kushina asked, her violet eyes boring into his as the blonde averted his gaze, his cheeks lighting with a light blush.

'_Dammit get a control of yourself, you already know how beautiful she is! So what's the big deal?!'_ Naruto mentally berated himself as he shook his head.

"_You know you want her Naru-kun,"_ Ayumi purred slyly when he made to walk around the red head standing in front of her.

"No...I'm fine," he muttered, now passing her as Kushina just stood there. Reaching the bed, the blonde took off his sweat shirt leaving his upper body naked.

Naruto didn't like acting like that towards Kushina, but he had to make his point clear; he knew keeping such an important thing from Mikoto was a big mistake. The Uchiha matriarch was not a kid who needed to be taken care of; she was a strong kunoichi!

The blonde's breathing however hitched upon feeling a soft pair of wet arms wrap around his bare stomach from behind. He went stiff upon feeling Kushina kissing the side of his neck.

"K-Kaa-san..." he uttered in surprise as she began to rub his abs as well as his chiselled chest softly- admiring his toned body. He didn't get a response as the red head began to nibble on his side neck gently while the blonde held back himself from groaning.

"Stop it..." Naruto hissed as he turned around to grab her shoulders, keeping her away.

He was taken aback by the passionate look in her eyes as she stared at him with a combination of love and lust.

"What do you think you're doing?!" the blonde's voice held anger as his grip on her bare shoulders tightened. Kushina however didn't respond as she quickly leaned forward to capture his lips, kissing him passionately.

The jinchuriki took a step back as her tongue began to explore his moist cavern, playing with his tongue. Her hands again got to work as she began to rub his shoulders, her soft hands doing their magic.

"_Whoa...__**" **_Ayumi whistled out, surprised at the way Kushina was acting.

Meanwhile, Naruto could feel himself losing control, a certain part of his anatomy waking up while Kushina's D-cups were squished against his hard chest as she moaned into the kiss, grinding her curvaceous body against his.

The blonde tried to push her back again, though this time she didn't budge; the red head was a kage after all. Naruto turned his head sideways forcibly, breaking away from the kiss. Kushina didn't stop as she began to place butterfly kisses on his jaw and neck.

"S-Stop it...Kushina..." he muttered weakly, now noticing that the towel was no longer covering her body- her hardened nipples pressing against his chest.

"_Oh my Kami...that's awesome Kushina!"_ Ayumi cheered from inside while Naruto could feel the rational part of his mind fading- which was now vaguely screaming at him to stop her, to push her away and just sleep! He had to ignore her! He couldn't forgive her so easily!

However with a hot and sexy woman such as Kushina seducing him like that, the blonde doubted any straight man could resist her.

"Naruto..." Kushina moaned, biting on the nape of his neck as she began to rub the bulge in his cargo pants. A groan escaped Naruto's lips, his breathing getting heavier as her right hand fumbled with his zipper anxiously before pulling it down.

"K-Kushina..." the whiskered blonde groaned as he breathed deeply into her long hair, the fresh scent of sweet peas invading his nostrils.

"Narutooo..." she again moaned into his neck, her hand now stroking his cock. God, could her moans get any sexier; her moans always turned him on so much. Her scent, her curves, her smooth and soft skin, everything about her made his hormones go crazy.

"S-Stop...stop it..." he protested weakly, trying to push her- which came out only as a slight nudge as Kushina continued with her ministrations. Taking a hold of his chin gently with her left hand, she turned his face towards her.

Naruto gazed at her through squinted eyes, his resolve weakening at every second as she stared back with love, passion and lust. The blonde opened his mouth slightly to say something, anything to protest when Kushina's lips crashed onto his.

The red head began to make out with him wildly, her left hand clutching his spiky locks of hair as she kissed him with passionate lust. Naruto wanted to push her away again, but his body wouldn't move. He was trying to say no, but his body kept on telling her yes- fully enjoying her hands and lips on his skin.

"Mhmm..." she moaned into the kiss, her tongue duelling with his as her left hand dropped down to grab his hand. The blonde's hormones went into overdrive when she guided his hand to place it on her voluptuous mounds, his fingers sinking into their velvety softness.

As if on automation, his hands began to knead her fleshy globe making her moan loudly into his mouth. Leaving his cock, she wrapped both of her arms around his neck, kissing him with more force as their lips and tongue melted into each others'.

Naruto now felt how wet her bare lower region was as she began to grind her vaginal lips against his meat stick. Immensely enjoying the feel of her smooth and soft skin against his, the blonde's right hand moved on its own to wrap around her lower back- pulling her more into him.

"Nharu..." Kushina moaned sloppily, her eyes closed in euphoria as his left hand continued to knead her right breast in circles, occasionally pinching her nipple.

Her lips left his with an audible pop, their noses touching each other as both of them panted heavily. Kushina continued to grind her vaginal lips against his cock as she licked her lips, a look of lust and passion on her face.

"N-Nothing...nothing's going to come between...us," she spoke in a low tone as his hand continued to squeeze her breast.

"Y-You're mine...w-what happens between us as ninja will not come between...our love. I c-can't stand...you ignoring m-me like that," she panted out, cupping his whiskered cheek lovingly, both of their eyes closed. Naruto's mind was foggily registering her words as his right hand began to squeeze her ass making her moan lightly.

"I'm s-sorry...things h-had to turn out this w-way...p-please don't be a-angry with me. I...l-love you so much Naruto," Kushina mumbled, opening her eyes slightly to gaze at him. She again kissed him, nibbling on his lower lip as his hands continued with their ministrations.

Bending down, she trailed her tongue over his chest down to his stomach. Grabbing his cock, she began to stroke it lightly, currently hunched in front of it with a light blush on her face.

"K-Kushina?" Naruto questioned in confusion as she parted the strands of her hair to behind her ear. Still stroking it, she leaned forward- taking the bulbous head of his manhood into her soft and wet cavern. Naruto groaned at the sudden sparks of pleasure that shot throughout his body as the red head began to bob her head back and forth- her tongue licking his cock's underside.

The blonde's hands gently grabbed her head as she sucked on his manhood, a lustful look on her face while her hand began to cup his balls gently.

"Kaa-saaan..." a loud groan escaped the jinchuriki's lips when her lips left his dick with an audible pop. Kushina began to lick its head, it's underside as her hands continued to massage his balls. Pushing up her voluptuous mounds, she engulfed his meat pole into her cleavage.

"Sh-Shit..." the blonde groaned as he began to push into her cleavage on instinct while she pushed her fleshy and wet globes into each other, squeezing his cock into their pleasurable softness.

"Y-You like this don't you?" Kushina had such an adorable expression on her face as she continued to give him a titty fuck, a cute blush on her face. Naruto couldn't believe his innocent mother was doing such a thing. Inwardly, a small part of his subconsciousness was wondering- "Where the hell did she learn to do that?"

One bijuu however knew the answer to that, a very surprised bijuu.

"_Whoa...I never thought she would seriously take my suggestion,"_ Ayumi whistled, herself moaning lightly as she began to rub her pussy, imagining that large cock inside of her. Well she was a pervert, so nothing out of character...right?

A moan escaped Kushina's lips as she continued to smother his manhood into her breasts.

'_It does feels...good.'_

Taking it further, she took the head of his cock into her mouth, rolling her tongue around it along with grazing her teeth over the rubbery softness of his bulbous tip- making the blonde groan loudly in pleasure.

"Kushinaaa..."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Flashback Ends<strong>_

* * *

><p>Naruto blushed profusely as he shook his head to get the images of what they did after that out of his mind.<p>

'_Man...yesterday I just saw a whole new face of shy and innocent Kaa-san,'_ he thought, a lost look on his face when he replayed her words after the sexual intercourse.

"_You may do whatever you like Naru-kun. If you think telling Mikoto-chan is the best option here, go for it. But...please reconsider this, take her feelings into account. As a fellow mother, I know what she's going through and how she feels; that's why I only want to give her some time to pull herself together. As the hokage, I will not stop you from doing what you want, but as your mother...I ask you to take Mikoto-chan's feelings under consideration. She may not be able to hold herself after receiving the news, I'm afraid she might break down completely."_

A sigh escaped Naruto's lips as he clenched his fists, now unsure of what to do. After listening to Kushina without his anger getting in the way, he could understand her logic. He couldn't understand a mother's feelings on this. Kushina was his mother, so she understood Mikoto's plight more than him currently. Earlier he was dead set on his opinion of telling Mikoto everything, but now...he didn't know.

Maybe she did need some time to pull herself together. No...Mikoto was an adult, a strong person by heart. He knew she deserved to know it right away, she could handle it. The information was about her elder son, it was rightfully hers in the first place; who were they to decide whether she decided to know it or not? But...what harm could it bring if they just delayed it a bit, till she got better?

'_Argh! This is so darn confusing dammit! I need some ramen!'_

"So you plan to hop down here any time soon Naruto?" the blonde was snapped out of his thoughts upon hearing Kakashi's voice from below. Lowering his head, he smiled sheepishly, briefly noticing Kurenai staring at him wide eyes while Asuma was looking at him with comprehension.

The jounin were standing just under the tree- on whose branch he was standing on. Sakura, Hinata, Tayuya, Kin, Kiba, Shino and Ino were standing a little away from them. Shikamaru was lazily plopped on the grass, gazing at the clouds with Chouji eating some potato chips. Neji and Tenten were sparring in the middle along with Gai and Lee doing their own form of warm up exercises. It seemed no one had noticed him except the three jounin below him.

Jumping lightly off the branch, the jinchuriki landed on the ground in front of Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma- a light grin on his face.

"Hey sensei," he greeted making the jounin eye smile at him.

"Glad you could make it out of your day dreaming," Kakashi uttered making the blonde chuckle to himself in embarrassment when he shifted his gaze, his orbs landing on a teary eyed Kurenai- who seemed to be holding herself back from taking him into a tight hug. His eyes softened at her, a warm smile stretching his lips as he bowed a bit.

"Kurenai-sensei...Asuma-sensei," Naruto greeted both the jounin as they smiled at him, Kurenai's smile being brighter and warmer.

Naruto had opted to keep his romantic life hidden from the general public of Konohagakure. Very few people knew of his commitment with Kushina, Hinata and the fire queens, and definitely not with Ayumi- it would cause nothing but chaos and madness. So in nutshell, he had to act properly in front of everyone, he could not let them know about his relationships- especially with Kurenai. Hinata already knew about him and Kurenai, but he didn't know about Kiba and Shino.

Of course, it was common news in the village that Uzumaki Naruto had to take on a minimum of ten wives to resurrect the Uzumaki clan, more likely to increase the Rinnegan count in the village- it was much more to him than just that though.

Still, it would be awkward for people to know a twelve year old hooking up with a jounin such as Kurenai. Well, not that awkward, physically he did look like about sixteen or eighteen.

"Naruto-kun, it's nice to see you," Kurenai spoke with a warm smile making the blonde grin lightly at her.

"Yeah, it's been a while Kurenai-sensei."

"So anybody knows why hokage-sama called all o-"

"Hey look it's the dobe!" the group of four turned their heads at hearing Kiba's voice. Naruto's left eye twitched at the 'dobe' part while everyone turned to look at his direction, their eyes lighting up at recognizing him.

'_I can't believe they STILL call me that,'_ the blonde thought while Ayumi chuckled in amusement, remembering the days when everyone considered him to be a deadlast.

"Hey Naruto!"

"How have you been?"

"Over here Naruto!"

The jinchuriki couldn't help but smile as the rookies waved at him to come over. The blonde glanced at the three jounin behind him as Kurenai smiled at him lovingly- knowing that he was excited to catch up with his friends after the invasions.

"Well, let's go then. You're the second last to arrive," Kakashi stated with a smile as the group of four began to walk towards the others.

"YOSH! MY ETERNAL YOUTHFUL RIVAL HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!" Lee exclaimed with fire in his eyes.

"Hey Lee!" Naruto waved with a grin, which faltered a bit upon receiving the 'Nice Guy' pose from Gai.

All the tension and pressure he had been feeling regarding Mikoto and everything else the past few days, instantly evaporated that instant as the blonde gazed at their smiles and grins. The grin on Kiba's face, the slight upward curve in Shino's lips, the warm smile on Hinata's face, the characteristic frown on Tayuya's face, the beaming expressions of Ino, Kin and Sakura, the smirk on Shikamaru's face along with Chouji smiling at him while eating- if that was possible; it all made him feel a rush of excitement.

"Hey guys, it's been a while huh?" he uttered with his characteristic foxy grin in place.

"It sure as hell been! We were just wondering where you were since we were all called at this training ground today by hokage-sama," Kiba verbalized with a grin.

"So, where have you been Naruto-kun?" Ino asked with a smile making him smile back at her warmly.

"Well shithead's been getting his butt kicked by some pillows," Tayuya spoke with a smirk making Hinata sigh while a vein popped on Naruto's forehead.

"Pillows?" Ino and Kin asked collectively.

"Hey this crazy girl calls you shithead?!" Kiba asked, a look of shock on his face making Tayuya's smirk widen when the jinchuriki crossed his arms over his chest.

"I call her soundshit," he grinned back making Tayuya's left eye twitch at that name while Kin giggled lightly at that.

"So Kin-chan, Ino-chan...how have you been? It's been a while huh?" Naruto addressed the two kunoichi as both of them blushed lightly.

"Hai, we haven't had the chance to meet since the chunin exam finals," Ino spoke softly with a smile.

"Well enough with your troublesome talk, do you know why we were called here Naruto?" Shikamaru stepped forward making Ino glare at him for interrupting her talk with Naruto.

"Well, I have a guess," the blonde spoke with a sigh, not entirely sure what his mother had in mind for him. He knew one thing though- it was for the sake of his training.

"Naruto-san, were you promoted to chunin? Why I ask? It's because you are wearing a chunin vest," Shino spoke in a monotone voice making Naruto look at his vest.

"Yup, just yesterday Ka...hokage-sama called me and team seven for some discussion. I was officially promoted to chunin then," he verbalized while Sakura's face fell at the mention of yesterday's meeting. The blonde, noticing her expression, walked to her before slinging his arm over her shoulders playfully.

"Oh c'mon Sakura-chan, like I said...it's not like we won't be able to meet each other," he assured his pink haired teammate making her smile softly as she gazed at the ground.

"Yeah..."

"Um, are we missing something here?" Ino questioned with curiosity when Sakura turned to her with a weak smile.

"The original team seven was disbanded permanently tomorrow," she muttered making their eyes widen in shock.

"W-What?"

"Is it because of you being promoted to the chunin rank Uzumaki-san?" Neji came walking along with Tenten.

"Neji...Tenten..." Naruto acknowledged the duo with a smile before nodding at their question. Sakura looked up at her blonde teammate upon feeling him squeeze her shoulder, noticing how he shook his head very lightly. She realized that he intended to keep the other reason a secret from them.

"Well aren't they enjoying themselves?" Kakashi spoke with a chuckle while Kurenai was looking at Naruto with a fond smile on her face. It really warmed her heart so see him so happy, he was finally getting a break.

"Kakashi, you know why we were all called here? I'm surprised hokage-sama stopped giving our squads any missions to call us here," Asuma questioned with a raised eyebrow when the silver haired jounin answered.

"You don't have to worry about the missions, our hokage is probably the most skilled user of the kage bunshin in the world. As for the reason she called us here? You'll see it pretty soon."

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Hokage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>"Well, we do kn-"<p>

"May I come in hokage-sama?" Kushina was interrupted as she noticed Tsunade's head peeping through the small gap between the slightly opened door and the wall- the slug sanin having a grin on her face.

"Oh of course Tsunade-sama, you may enter my humble abode," Kushina mocked with a straight expression before both woman burst out giggling. Hiruzen, who was sitting in front of Kushina, sweat dropped at their antics.

'_Women...even after all these years, that's a subject I'd still fail in.'_

"Sarutobi-sensei, how's it going?" the blonde asked casually as she walked into the office.

"Well with Kushina-chan here handling all the work, I can finally enjoy my retirement," the sandaime articulated with a smile.

"Well it sucks that you didn't use the shadow clones for the paperwork jiji," Kushina huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as Tsunade sat beside Hiruzen.

"Sorry but I'd rather do the work myself than enduring the headache of the information overload every time. I'm sure you've felt the hangover like experience," Hiruzen said in amusement making the redhead blush in embarrassment.

'_Oh my sake...'_ Tsunade thought gloomily at the mention of 'hangover', inwardly cursing Shizune and Kushina from completely banning her from drinking sake- the latter giving the excuse that she was spoiler her 'Naru-kun.'

"Well I'll soon be designing a seal to counter the hangover effect of shadow clones!" Kushina exclaimed making Hiruzen chuckle.

"Of course you'll do, but I was never a fuinjutsu specialist like you. And I'm sure such a complex seal was out of Jiraiya's reach."

"You hurt me sensei," the trio turned their heads towards the window.

"Well lay the red carpet for the pervert," Tsunade spoke in a bored tone. Jiraiya shook his finger in front of his face as he chuckled to himself mysteriously.

"How many times I have told you Tsunade? I'm not a pervert, I'M A SUPER P-"

"Jiraiya look your Icha-Icha books are on fire!" Kushina exclaimed, pointing out towards the windows making the sanin's eyes widen in horror as he whizzed his head.

"WHAT?! Where?! Why?! Who?!"

"Sorry, it was a joke. Now sit and get on with the meeting," the hokage said with a lazy wave making Hiruzen chuckle. Tsunade giggled at seeing the dark cloud over the toad sanin's face as he dragged himself to the third chair in front of the table.

"So, what's the status on Akatsuki's movements?" the sandaime asked, the aura becoming seriously around the four of them as Kushina turned to Jiraiya.

"Well they just recently made their move against Naruto. I had to fight off Orochimaru and Kabuto while Naruto faced off against Deidara from Iwa. Hinata and Tayuya were forced to take on Sasori of the Red Sand. The thing was that they were waiting for more members to arrive, they were taking their sweet time playing with Naruto and those kids," the white haired sanin uttered with a grave expression while Tsunade lowered her head in shame, remembering how she had to watch Naruto and those two kunoichi fight for their lives against those S-rank nin.

"I see, it's rather strange that two powerful S-rank ninja would wait for reinforcements. They could easily have taken down Naruto back then with their combined power," he further added making Kushina frown, she didn't like Naruto's strength being looked down upon- but Jiraiya had a point there.

"Their leader, the one with the Rinnegan, it must be his orders. Though it still confuses me why? Maybe it's because he knows the power of Rinnegan, and actually doesn't want to take any chances with Naruto? He is a jinchuriki too after all," Hiruzen voiced making Kushina nod.

"I guess we have to train Naru-chan, make him powerful as quickly as possible," Tsunade spoke with a sigh, not liking this in the least.

"He has to be strong enough to stand upto at least one of them one on one. I know Akatsuki is no joke, all of their members are special. But so is Naruto, he has the Rinnegan as well as the power of the strongest bijuu. All he needs is time and some proper training," Jiraiya worded as Kushina leaned back into her seat.

"Me and Mikoto-chan will take care of his training," Kushina spoke with a serious expression making Jiraiya look at her in surprise.

"But you're the hokage Kushina, are you sure you'll be able to train him alongside?" the toad sanin asked making her narrow her eyes.

"He's my son, I'll do anything for him. I would have given him to you, but you managing your spy network right now is very important for the village. We have to keep tabs on Akatsuki and Orochimaru's movements. Kaa-san has the hospital to manage, so she has her hands full too," the godaime hokage explained.

"Now hold on Kushina, me being in charge of the hospital doesn't mean I will not be able to help Naru-chan. I have already planned on the techniques I'm going to train him in. He can also hold multiple summoning contracts due to the Rinnegan correct? Well I plan on giving him the slug contract," the blonde medic spoke decisively with a serious look on her face while both Kushina and Jiraiya looked surprised at her resolve.

"I see...thank you kaa-san," Kushina smiled as the slug sanin frowned at her.

"Thank you? I consider him as my son Kushina. I missed thirteen years of his life, I plan to make it upto him in any way I can," Tsunade uttered when the red head felt a pinch in her heart, remembering how Naruto usually calls Tsunade as 'Kaa-chan.'

"Ahm, actually...I too would like to train Naruto-kun," this time Kushina, Tsunade and Jiraiya, all three of them looked at Hiruzen in shock.

"Sensei/Jiji?" Hiruzen sighed at the expressions on their faces.

"Although physically I'm not at my prime along with my chakra reserves having been deteriorated, it doesn't mean my skills as a teacher have worsened too. Remember that I was trained by the shodaime and the nidaime hokage along with me training the renowned sanin, two of you here. Don't underestimate me," the look in his eyes, right then told them that he was not joking- that he was indeed hailed as Shinobi no Kami in his prime.

"Hmm...I wish I could have a spar with you when you were in your prime jiji," Kushina pouted making the old man chuckle while Jiraiya shuddered at that.

"Uh Kushina, you should know how dense his chakra is. And when he was in his prime, his chakra reserves were huge...really, even with your Sharingan, you won't have been able to defeat him," the toad sanin uttered with a sigh.

"Well Kushina's chakra is dense too. Her expertise in an art as rare as sealing always gives her an edge in any fight. I too wouldn't have been able to defeat her," Hiruzen articulated with a smile.

"It would have been a draw then," Tsunade said with a nod while Kushina continued to pout.

"I don't care about the outcome, I know how strong jiji was. I just wanted to fight the legendary professor is all," the red head shrugged before Hiruzen sighed.

"Let's stop with this childish talk. Besides, I'm sure Naruto would be giving you one hell of a workout in the upcoming years. That boy has immense talent. I tell you, one day he's going to surpass us all," Tsunade and Jiraiya smiled while Kushina nodded with a grin.

"Of course, he's my son after all," she uttered with pride.

"Only 'son' Kushina?" Jiraiya wiggled his eyebrows teasingly when the redhead's face grew serious as she glared at him.

"Eh? Well he's her son, what else?" Tsunade asked in confusion, wiping the teasing smile on the white haired sanin's face.

"Oh nothing, he was just saying that how Naruto and I look best friends, the way we interact and all, right Jiraiya?" the red head's smile was clearly signalling the sanin to shut his mouth.

'_So she hasn't told Tsunade yet,'_ Hiruzen realized with a sigh.

"Well yeah, they do look like the best of friends. But that just makes them that much closer right?" the blonde medic verbalized with a smile making the Uzumaki nod.

"Anyway, Yakushi Kabuto, how's the interrogation regarding him going?" Hiruzen uttered when Kushina sighed deeply.

"No, he just won't open his mouth. Nothing effects him, probably one of Orochimaru's experiments on him to resist torture. Ibiki is still trying, but Kabuto is not opening his mouth. I'm letting Ibiki have a go for now. If he still refuses to tell us anything, I'll just use fuinjutsu."

"You'll use sealing techniques for torture?" Jiraiya questioned with a raised eyebrow making her nod.

"Yep, there are many things in a human body that can be sealed, which can lead to great deal of torture, one way or another for that person. There are several other methods too, there's a reason I studied some human anatomy under Kaa-san back in the days," the godaime explained while Tsunade nodded, remembering the days when she trained Kushina.

"I see. Well I also plan on training him in the art of Adamantine staff," Hiruzen declared with closed eyes.

This was a bomb shell for the trio as they stared at him.

"S-Sensei, are you sure? So you're going to make him sign your summoning contract?" Tsunade asked making him nod while Kushina still couldn't believe that the sandaime hokage, was going to give his 'weapon of choice' to Naruto. Adamantine staff, a legendary staff which was as hard as diamond, something which the Monkey king Enma could transform into. It was the weapon that had led Hiruzen through the world war, his main fighting style.

"You think Enma will approve of it? The monkey summoning contract does not serve anyone outside the Sarutobi clan. And if Enma does approve, you know how difficult it is to master the Adamantine staff, it takes years of practice and hardwork," Jiraiya argued.

"He's right jiji. Summons are extremely loyal once they have pledged to follow a clan. The elemental dragons too only serve the Uzumaki clan," Kushina intervened as Hiruzen gazed outside through the windows.

"We'll have to see about that Kushina. Naruto-kun is special. The fact that he possesses the Rinnegan may work in our favour...only time will tell. I have to make Enma meet him," the sandaime articulated when Kushina placed a hand on her forehead.

"He has so much to train into, and we don't even have much time. Akatsuki will be waiting for a chance to attack. Though I think the reason they have not attacked Konoha yet is mainly because of us. Me, Kaa-san, Jiraiya, Mikoto and jiji...they know that even though the village is weak after the recent invasion, we still hold enough military strength. Not to mention that I recently boosted the security of the village using my fuinjutsu," Kushina explained with a grim look on her face.

"Should we keep him inside the village for the time being?" Tsunade asked making the red head nod.

"Yes, but only for a while. Naruto has been feeling a lot of stress and pressure lately, so I want him to just train here and spend time with us. I know that he soon would start complaining for missions, that's the reason I pulled him out of the original team seven yesterday. I will be forming a four man squad including him," Hiruzen was a little surprised at this move, but he did agree with the logic. Kakashi, although very strong, still could not match upto the Akatsuki, not alone at least.

"Who do you have in mind for the three members of the squad with Naruto?" Tsunade questioned making the red head shrug.

"You'll see soon enough. Right now, we should concentrate on training him as well as quickly healing the damage dealt to the village due to the invasions."

* * *

><p><strong>Akatsuki's Base: Unknown Location<strong>

* * *

><p>Several hologram figures could be seen standing in a circle along with two of them being present there, all of them wearing their characteristic black cloaks with red clouds printed on them.<p>

"I'm severely disappointed in you Sasori, Deidara..." the holographic figure of Pein spoke, his eyes closed as one of them snickered at a blonde's expense.

"We underestimated the little brat, and the fact that Tsunade and Jiraiya were accompanying him made it all the more difficult," Sasori uttered in his gruff voice.

"Jiraiya was busy fighting with Orochimaru while Tsunade the slug sanin was down due to her fear of blood. Deidara, you were facing the jinchuriki one on one, and yet you were badly beaten because of your overconfidence," Pein verbalized sternly as the blonde Iwa ex-terrorist growled lowly.

"That brat caught me off guard that is all, I had the battle all under control. He just managed to fool us, creating a large smoke screen to get away," Deidara defended himself.

"You fuckers are good for nothing suckers. Really, you couldn't even capture a twelve year old kid. Jashin-sama must be laughing at you right now," Hidan articulated with a chuckle.

"You wanna fight you asshole! I'll show your Jashin-sama what's art!" Deidara shouted in anger.

"Quiet!" Pein exclaimed in a booming voice, silencing them as he opened his eyes.

"Kakuzu, Hidan...what about you two. You were supposed to intercept their escape route," the leader worded with narrowed eyes.

"I myself don't know how, but they somehow managed to slip under our senses," Kakuzu said seriously.

"I see, well it's not much of a surprise. Jiraiya of the sanin is a reconnaissance expert after all. Anyway, forget what has happened and let's move on. Itachi, Kisame...I want you to keep watch in Hi no Kuni for any activity regarding the kyuubi jinchuriki, have your spies spread throughout the country. Sasori and Deidara, you take Kaze no Kuni. Hidan and Kakuzu, both of you take Mizu no Kuni. Zetsu will be in charge of Kaminari no Kuni. This may not be much of use in practicality considering we can't keep track of the whole land, still I do know that the jinchuriki will have to leave his village someday. If they keep him caged up in Konoha, then we will have no choice but to launch an attack on the village. It will take us a minimum of three years to prepare for sealing the tailed beasts. Meanwhile, we will only focus on the kyuubi jinchuriki," Pein explained making them nod.

"What about Iwa? Who are you going to send there?" Zetsu's black half questioned making the leader close his eyes again.

"Just focus on the tasks given to you. Is that clear all of you?" the Rinnegan user verbalized in a staid tone.

"Well better get to work Itachi. Looks like we'll be doing most of the work," Kisame said with his characteristic grin when the hologram of the Uchiha dispersed.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: Training Ground Three<strong>

* * *

><p>"Okay now enough with the reunion everyone, Mikoto-sama has arrived," Kurenai ordered to the group of chattering young shinobi, Kakashi and Asuma standing behind her.<p>

Naruto was sitting on the grass alongside Hinata and Kin with the others just goofing around nearby.

"Huh? Where? I don't see anyone else," Kiba questioned, currently sitting on the grass with the others.

"Behind you Inuzuka-san," everyone snapped their heads upon hearing an amused, but soft voice. Kiba's eyes widened along with several others as they found the Uchiha matriarch standing behind them with a smile.

'_Wow, some ninja we are. She sneaked up on us so easily,'_ Shikamaru thought with a sigh, muttering 'troublesome' under his breath.

"Whoa! When did you come?" the Inuzuka questioned with wide eyes as he quickly staggered to his feet along with the others while Naruto had a bright smile on his face.

"Mikoto-chan! So you're in this too?" he asked as she turned to him, nodding at him with a warm smile.

Sakura and Ino however, had their eyes widened as they gazed at the last female Uchiha.

'_So this is Sasuke-kun's mother...'_ both of them thought simultaneously, having seen her for the first time.

"Hello everyone, most of you may not know me, but y-"

"You're kidding! Who wouldn't know you?! You're Uchiha Mikoto, the famed Kawarimi no Kami!" Tenten yelled out spontaneously before she quickly covered her mouth, stuttering a muffled apology with a crimson blush on her cheeks.

"Goddess of Substitution?" Tayuya questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, she's the only ninja who has completely mastered the substitution technique," Neji spoke, his eyes closed while he was currently leaning against the trunk of a large tree, under which all of them were standing.

Kiba turned his head back to look at a smiling Mikoto, an amused look in her eyes when he scratched his cheek lightly.

"Um, no offence but, what's the big deal with mastering the substitution jutsu? I mean...everyone was able to do it in the academy, even Naruto," the Inuzuka pointed out making a vein pop on the jinchuriki's forehead at the jab.

'_Even after I saved his ass against Gaara during the finals...the idiot,'_ Naruto thought with a sigh.

"Kiba-kun, I would appreciate if you don't talk like that regarding Naruto-kun. We all know how strong he is," Hinata spoke with a serious frown on her face, taking her teammate by surprise. Well everyone did agree on that, there was just no questioning it, Naruto was on a whole other level.

"Uh yeah...sorry," he apologized as Naruto just waved it off.

"Meh, no need for that. With my large chakra reserves, the techniques they taught us in the academy were always difficult for me. However, I think Mikoto-chan has already answered your question," the blonde vocalized with a smirk making everyone look at him in confusion.

"Always the sharp one huh Naruto-kun?" Mikoto spoke with a giggle as she pointed at her feet.

"This is where your shuriken was lying Inuzuka-san," this made their eyes widen in surprise.

'_I see...she substituted with the shuriken to appear behind us so quickly,'_ Shino thought as he adjusted his glasses, blown away by this unorthodox skill.

"No way! You were able to substitute yourself with just a shuriken!" Ino exclaimed in shock, matching several others' thoughts as she nodded with a smirk.

'_With no smoke no less...'_

"Well there's a reason Mikoto-chan's called the Goddess of Substitution you guys," Naruto pointed out with a sweat drop. Everyone however looked at him in surprise? Why was he calling the Uchiha matriarch with such affection? Even their jounin-sensei were giving her proper respect.

"Alright, now stop pestering Mikoto-sama," Kurenai stated as she walked towards them along with Kakashi, Gai and Asuma.

"No problem Kurenai-chan, it does remind me of the old days, when we ourselves used to admire Tsunade-sama so much," Mikoto uttered with a smile making a certain weapon user gasp.

"You admired Tsunade-sama too?!" Tenten exclaimed before again clasping a hand over her mouth, muttering out more apologies making Neji shake his head while Naruto and Mikoto along with the jounin smiled at her excited antics.

"Let's get to the business here. Now you guys might be wondering why hokage-sama gathered your squads here at this training ground. The answer is simple, all of you will be undergoing a joint training schedule staring today, except Naruto-kun here," Mikoto started making most of them look at her in confusion.

"Except Naruto?" Lee asked, who had been uncharacteristically quiet all this time.

"Yes. After the invasions, hokage-sama sees that it will be productive as well as fun for you young shinobi to train with each other, not just your squads. You can learn a great deal from each other along with these jounin here. Just think of yourself as one big squad of twelve, with four jounin-sensei, meaning you will not be restricted to be taught by only your sensei. You are free to ask any of them here. In this training schedule, all of you are teammates, all of you are comrades, united as one strong team. All of you are the shinobi of the leaf, no longer competing against each other like you did in the chunin exams," Mikoto spoke with authority, a serious look on her face as she gazed at the future generation of the village while the rookies listened to her intently, drawn into by her speech, smiles on their faces.

"So let ggo of all the grudges you've been keeping since the exams. Forget those lost battles. Remember that you all are leaf ninja, you all are comrades," the Uchiha uttered as Kin and Sakura, Neji and Hinata, Lee and Naruto...all nodded at each other with determined looks in their eyes.

The four jounin smiled at such a rare sight- all of them being united into a squad. Such training schedule, even a session, had never taken place during their time. And now, they wish it had happened- it really looked like a lot of fun. Training like that with your comrades together, getting to know each other in the process, getting to gauge each other's strengths and weaknesses, who wouldn't enjoy it?

"I will be training Naruto-kun here while all of you continue to train with each other. I know it destroys the reason for this joint training schedule seeing as I'm only teaching him, but you have to know something very important," Mikoto paused as she glanced at all of them while the blonde had a somewhat surprised look on his face.

"I'm sure most of you have several questions in your mind when it comes to Naruto-kun? Some of them may be- how did he gain the Rinnegan during the chunin exams and suddenly became so strong? What is the red chakra that you might have seen him use several times? Why did the villagers used to hate him, and why do some of them still hate him? And why, why should he get special treatment regarding training? Why does hokage-sama seem to favour him? Why is it that Jiraiya-sama and Tsunade-sama favour him? Why is he being trained so much? A few of you may know the reasons, who have already been ordered by hokage-sama to keep it to themselves. But for those who don't know..." the raven haired kunoichi stared at them with a grave expression while Naruto's heart was hammering against his chest. No way? Was she just going to tell all of them like that?

'_I...I'm not ready for this...'_

"Mikoto-chan wha-" he stepped forward when she looked at him with a smile.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, unless you feel ready to tell them, all of it will remain a secret," she uttered.

"What secret? Why are these things being hidden from us?" Kiba asked with narrowed eyes when she stepped towards them.

"For now, all you need to know is that Naruto-kun carries a huge burden on his shoulders, something which explains all the questions. Not only the burden, but his family too. There is a terrorist organization called Akatsuki which is after Naruto-kun, a group containing about a dozen of S-ranked missing nin, all of them targeting him."

"S rank ninja?" Ino asked with wide eyes while Sakura had a sad look in her green orbs as she glanced at her blonde ex-teammate, who had a neutral look on his face. Kin too looked to be surprised while Tayuya knew it all, being in sound four had its perks. Hinata touched Naruto's forearm in comfort making him smile at her softly.

"Yes, S rank...all of them. If it helps, one of them is Uchiha Itachi...my elder son," she spoke with closed eyes making them look at her in shock. Although Mikoto 'knew' that Itachi was on their side, she still wanted them to realize the seriousness of the situation.

"U-Uchiha Itachi?" Lee questioned with wide eyes, they knew how much of a prodigy he was. And if this was the level of Akatsuki...

"As you can see, the situation is quite grave here. Naruto-kun is a shinobi of the leaf, and as such, we can't let them just kill him. That's the reason we need to make him strong as fast as possible," she explained as a tense silence ensued between the rookies while the jounin had serious looks in their eyes.

"Gai-sensei, you know this secret?" Lee questioned, turning to his mentor making him nod.

"Yes Lee, in fact all of the chunin and the upper ranks know about this. You have to understand that Naruto-kun does carry an extremely heavy burden," for once, the green clad jounin was dead serious.

"I see, then I understand. I'm with you Naruto-kun!" Lee exclaimed with determination making the rookies look at him.

"Well count me in too," Sakura spoke with a smile.

"I'm obviously in," Hinata quickly followed, currently holding the blonde's hand as others began to agree.

Naruto had a surprised look on his face as he just stared at them accept it so easily. He was expecting them to demand the truth, but for them to be so understanding...

'_All of us have matured so much...'_ the jinchuriki thought, his eyes softening at his comrades.

"Well whatever history he has, whatever pain in the ass secrets he has, he's still our friend. So now let's just begin this training schedule. Man I'm excited to get on with this! It's really fun to flaunt your skills in front of all your friends!" Kiba pumped his fist into his palm with a grin as Akamaru on his head yelped in agreement.

Others just shook their heads at his antics while Mikoto and Kurenai had smiles on their faces.

'_This was the right move Kushina/nee-chan,'_ both of them thought simultaneously as they glanced at the genuine happiness in the jinchuriki's eyes.

"_Ayumi-chan, you heard that? I never expected them to understand the situation so readily.'_

"_Well you have Kushina to thank for that. I'm really happy for you Naruto-kun,"_ the bijuu said softly making him nod.

Mikoto clapped to get their attention as she began to walk towards the centre of the clearing.

"For today, we will test all of your current skills. Naruto-kun and team Guy, get here," she spoke, now standing in the middle of the clearing, the lake of training ground three behind her.

The weather was cloudy while there was a slight cool breeze flowing across the village. Naruto walked along with Neji, Lee and Tenten towards the middle of the clearing.

"What do you think she's planning on doing?" Ino asked while staring at them making Shikamaru sigh.

"Wait for ten seconds and you might just know the answer," he mocked when she hit him over the head, a vein throbbing on her forehead while Chouji continued to eat his chips.

"What youthful exercises do we have to endure to prove our youthfulness to you Mikoto-sama?!" Lee exclaimed, already doing sit ups with Naruto, Neji and Tenten standing beside him, the trio sighing at his antics while Mikoto just stared at him awkwardly.

"Heh well, that's bushy brows style," the whiskered blonde verbalized with a chuckle making the Uchiha matriarch smile at the nickname before she got serious.

"Okay. Team guy will fight Naruto-kun here, so it will be a three against one match," she declared, making their eyes widen.

"I'd rather fight Naruto-san one on one," Neji spoke, his arms crossed over his chest making Mikoto raise an eyebrow while Naruto glanced at the Hyuga.

"Tell you what Hyuga-san, if you three can beat Naruto-kun together, I'll have you fight him alone," the Uchiha uttered with a smile.

"Fine then," the Hyuga verbalized while the blonde had a neutral look on his face. Team guy began to walk back, getting some distance from Naruto and Mikoto.

"Alright, I want team guy to come at Naruto-kun with the intent to kill, no holding back," she ordered making the rookies' eyes widen in surprise.

"Hey isn't this taking a bit too far. I know Naruto's strong, but to fight a handicapped match like this? And this is no joke, this is team guy we're talking about, with two close range taijutsu specialists in combination with a long range fighter," Kiba worded with a frown making the others nod while Hinata and Tayuya kept quiet.

'_If you would've watched him fight that Akatsuki nin, you won't be saying such things right now,'_ the Hyuga heiress thought, standing calmly with the others.

The jounin were all standing quietly with serious looks on their faces, curious as to how Naruto would handle it...or how team guy would handle it.

Naruto however had a frown on his face as he stood with Mikoto.

"Mikoto-chan, what's the meaning of this? Why am I being pitted against my own comrades now with them ordered to attack me with the intent to kill? I thought we were here to train together," he questioned making her look at him, the Uchiha matriarch smiling at him softly as she put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but this is mainly for the genin here. Kushina told me that they have never seen you go all out, that they don't know your real strength. Before the training begins, I want them to know to difference between their and your skills...this will drive them to train harder, catch upto you. You don't have to hurt them if you don't want to, but at least show them how fast you can beat them, how easily you can do it without exerting yourself, if you can do it that is. I myself have never seen you fight, so let's see whether you're really strong or if Kushina was just boasting," Mikoto winked teasingly making the jinchuriki sigh.

"So I have to finish as fast as I can huh?" he muttered before shrugging to himself.

"I'm sure you will enjoy training with everyone Naruto-kun, just relax yourself," Mikoto smiled at him warmly, squeezing his shoulder in comfort. The blonde smirked at her lightly before she started to walk away from them.

Naruto and team Guy now stood face to face, the latter having serious expressions on their faces as they took their stances.

"Okay, I intend to finish this as fast as possible. Get ready, I'm not going to hold back," the jinchuriki voiced seriously making Neji smirk at him.

"You might be stronger than us individually, but as a team, we are a force to be dealt with," this made Lee nod along with Tenten, both having concentrated looks on their faces.

"Of course! You cannot underestimate the youthfulness of our teamwork!" Lee yelled making Mikoto sweat drop while the whiskered blonde just shook his head.

'_They really don't get it...fine then.'_

"Okay, you can begin now," the raven haired kunoichi declared loudly as both sides stood quietly. Neji was in his Jyuken stance, Lee in his usual Goken stance with Tenten holding two scrolls in her hands, standing behind her teammates.

Naruto unclenched his fists before lifting his hands a bit to his sides making them narrow their eyes while Mikoto along with everyone else watched him in curiosity. The Uchiha's eyes widened a bit when electric sparks started to crack around his hands before lightning flames burst out to cover them. Lee narrowed his eyes at it in realization.

"**Raiken **(Lightning Fist) huh?" the taijutsu specialist spoke, having fought against it in the preliminaries while Naruto had a grim look on his face.

'_So he can concentrate the lightning natured chakra to his hands and use it in conjunction with his taijutsu, tai-ninjutsu I see,' _Mikoto thought, an appraising look in her eyes.

"Let's begin," the jinchuriki uttered as he increased the gap between his feet, outstretching his right palm forward with his other palm near his chest, facing forward- something which shocked _everyone_ present there, except one.

"J-Jyuken?" Neji spoke with wide eyes as he gazed at the blonde standing in the same stance as him, his hands encased in crackling lightning.

'_Why is he taking the Gentle Fist stance?'_ Mikoto thought in surprise while Hinata had a smile on her face.

"Just to warn you guys, I don't have gravity seals on me today," Naruto said before he blurred forward with a burst of speed.

'_Whoa...'_ Kiba thought in astonishment at the blonde's speed.

'_Fast,_' Lee's own eyes widened at the sudden speed of his blonde comrade, who had suddenly vanished from their sight.

KRIZ!

"Ugh!" he exclaimed in shock when Naruto appeared in front of him to deliver a palm thrust to his chest, lightning sparks coursing through Lee's body while Neji and Tenten turned their heads towards him in astonishment.

'_Such speed...'_ the Hyuga thought when again the jinchuriki vanished into thin air.

"Agh!" Neji's Byakugan widened upon spotting Tenten being palm'ed from behind as she went skidding on the ground towards him.

'_There's no mistake, he IS using the Jyuken style! But the effects are different, he is not blocking any chakra points!'_ he deduced quickly, in the midst of turning around.

"Way too slow Neji," the Hyuga gritted his teeth, his pupils zooming out when he felt two palms hitting the back of his thighs.

'_What the...I can't feel my legs!'_ Neji pondered as he fell to the ground in slow motion, his knees giving out.

"Well, was that satisfactory?" Naruto asked, now facing Mikoto while the lightning around his hands began to diminish slowly.

Everyone had stunned looks on their faces as they gazed at the blonde jinchuriki slack jawed, not believing that the fight had ended in exactly three seconds.

"W-Well, it certainly seems hokage-sama was not wrong about you," Mikoto uttered with a chuckle, inwardly still not being able to get over her shock. She had never seen or heard of such a taijutsu. Turning her head, she was not surprised to see the four jounin staring at Naruto with amazement. A giggle escaped her lips upon noticing the jaws of selective rookies on the ground.

"I...I can't b-breathe properly," Naruto's eyes softened as he crouched in front of Lee, helping him on his feet.

"Don't worry, the effects will wear off in a couple of minutes," the blonde spoke while patting Lee's back.

"W-What did you do?" Neji asked, still lying on the grass as he struggled to stand up.

"My b-back is all numb," Tenten grumbled as she stood up a bit shakily, now massaging her lower back. Naruto walked towards her before applying his chakra to her back making her sigh in relief, a sheepish look on his face.

"Isn't it obvious guys, I just electrocuted you, more like gently electrocuted you so that you don't die. That's the reason you were shocked and your respective body parts are now numb," he explained with a grin while nodding to himself, satisfied with the results.

"That was amazing Naruto-kun...really, I couldn't even see you," Lee worded with a serious look as he clenched his fists.

"Yeah, that was me going all out."

"I can't believe how easily we were beaten, you completely demolished us," Tenten spoke gloomily, now feeling the numbness going away while Naruto sighed to himself.

"That's exactly the reason I didn't want to do this," he grumbled under his breath, momentarily glaring at Mikoto.

"Okay now, discouraging you was not the aim of this spar. It was simply to show you the difference between our skills, something which is supposed to motivate you to train harder, not get your morale down," the whiskered blonde patted Tenten's back encouragingly, a light grin on his face when Neji stood up, his knees somewhat wobbly.

"I presume Hinata taught you Jyuken?" Neji asked with narrowed eyes while Naruto nodded with a smile.

"Of course, but my Jyuken is still crap compared to both of you. It was my speed that caught you off guard, if you are able to match that, I'm sure you would kick my ass Neji!" the Hyuga still looked disappointed as he turned his head away.

"Whoa man, what the hell was that?"

"Yeah, I couldn't even see you. And was that Gentle Fist?"

"Did you copy it with your bloodline?"

"Man what a troublesome guy."

Naruto sighed as he looked at Mikoto pointedly, now facing the rookies as they approached him along with the jounin.

"Okay, yes that Jyuken, but I just used lightning natured chakra with it. Basically it numbs the region where I strike leading to different effects and can even kill you, it all depends on the amount of chakra I put through. No I didn't copy it, and yes Hinata-chan taught me the basics about it. Yes I'm pretty fast, that's why you couldn't see me. Now let's stop with the 'ooh's and 'aah's and get started with this training schedule!" he blabbered non-stop before coming to a stop, a decisive look on his face making Hinata giggle at his antics.

"I have to say that was a really interesting technique Naruto," Kakashi eye-smiled at his student/ making Naruto laughed in embarrassment.

"Well it's still not usable in real battle, so I have to develop my Jyuken first."

"It's not even ready and we were defeated so easily," Tenten grumbled, a dark cloud over her making everyone sweatdrop.

"Not to worry my youthful pupils! This only means that we have to further brighten our youthful flames!" Gai gave his 'nice guy' pose making Lee nod along with Neji while Naruto sighed in relief.

"Every time we see you fight you just seem to get farther and farther away from us. It's like you're in an entirely different league," Ino spoke with a sigh, the rookies looking down at the ground with solemn looks on their faces.

"Everyone, instead of looking down upon yourself, why not ask Naruto how much he trained to achieve this level of skill? Maybe he trained much harder than all of you? Maybe he never gave up and kept trying? Maybe he had to face death several times to get this much stronger?" Kurenai stepped forward with a frown making the genin look at her.

"Was Naruto not the deadlast just a few months ago? Was he not in your shoes just a few months ago? All of you were so much stronger than him, but did you ever see him giving up like this? All we saw was him training day in and night out to get stronger, all of you were his motivation, he was motivated to get stronger, to surpass all of you. Shouldn't you do the same? Shouldn't you be motivated to train harder, to surpass him?" Kurenai verbalized as the rookies gazed at their feet.

"She's right, this is not the time to complain. We just have to train harder!" Sakura exclaimed with a grave look on her face with Ino and Hinata nodding with her.

"Yosh! Defeating Naruto-kun has been my goal since the preliminaries! Prepare yourself my eternal youthful rival, for I'm going to train much harder from now on!" Lee shouted with fire in his eyes as he pumped his fist upwards.

"Yeah, let's begin 'Surpass Naruto and Kick His ASS!'" Kiba cheered with a grin making Naruto sweat drop.

"This is all your fault Kurenai-sensei!" the blonde pointed an accusing finger the genjutsu mistress making her blush lightly while everyone laughed at his antics.

'_Of course, he looks so relaxed now...this training schedule is already starting to do its work,'_ Mikoto thought with a smile as she looked at a laughing Naruto.

"Now let's get serious everyone! Your real training starts from tomorrow, today we'll do a different sort of exercise. All of you will fight Naruto-kun here, and try to punch him. There will no ninjutsu or genjutsu, only pure taijutsu. You guys win if any of you is able to land a punch on him before the sun sets. And Naruto-kun is not allowed to attack, he can only defend himself, or dodge for that matter," Mikoto laid out the rules, making all of them grin excitedly.

"Hey what the hell?! This is so unfair! Why can't I attack?! You expect me keep dodging them till evening?!" Naruto yelled comically making Kurenai giggle lightly while Mikoto began to whistle a tune to herself, ignoring the blonde jinchuriki.

"Okay everyone, you can start now!" the Uchiha matriarch cheered as she shunshined back along with the jounin making the whiskered blonde repeatedly turn his head back towards the rookies and back at where she was standing.

"What?! Right now?! Hey get back here!"

"Oh why so afraid of us Naruto?" Sakura teased with a devilish grin as she cracked her knuckles, all of them sporting predatory looks on their faces.

"Get ready for the most vicious sucker punch of your life shithead-kun."

"Oh stop acting Naruto-kun, I know you can keep dodging us for two days straight if you have to. Take this seriously, this is for our training too," what Hinata said actually surprised everyone as they looked back at the jinchuriki who just sighed lightly.

"Way to go and burst my bubble Hinata-chan. Oh well, c'mon then...let's see if you can even touch me," he spoke with a smirk, again surprising them with the sudden change in his aura.

* * *

><p><strong>Later That Evening: Konoha: Mikoto's Apartment<strong>

* * *

><p>"The gentle fist you used today, where did you get that idea from?" Mikoto asked from the kitchen, currently preparing some green tea.<p>

"Oh that, I already used Raiken back in preliminaries. Noticing the numbing effects whenever I hit my opponent with my lightning fist, I thought it would be better if I use lightning with gentle fist since it requires less power and rather just a simple touch. Of course it uses more chakra, but if I'm able to master the katas of Jyuken to a certain degree, along with a near perfect chakra control...that style can be deadly. I still haven't come up with a name for it though," Naruto responded from the living room, currently lying on the couch as he watched TV.

"I have to say that was an ingenious idea. Difficult to execute yes, but I can imagine it's effects if mastered by someone," she spoke while walking out of the kitchen, a tray in her hands.

"I'm still a long way from mastering it, let's see where it goes. Developing original techniques is always a double edged sword," he murmured, flicking on the channels as she set the tray on the table before sitting beside him.

"So, you liked the idea of training with your friends?" Mikoto asked as he nodded with enthusiasm.

"Definitely! It's exciting and I'm so looking forward to it this month. Training with some company is always fun!" a bright grin on his face as she smiled at him.

"The ease with which you were able to dodge them till the evening kind of surprised me. It's still difficult for me to comprehend that a twelve year shinobi can be so strong you know," Mikoto chuckled lightly making him frown playfully.

"Heh, is that coming from a mother whose elder son..." the blonde trailed as he averted his gaze while Mikoto nodded with him.

"That's right I suppose. Itachi-kun was also incredibly strong at your age, I myself found it absurd. I always scolded him, telling him not push himself so hard. I mean, who the hell becomes an Anbu captain at the age of thirteen? He should've been enjoying his life!" she finished with a sigh making the jinchuriki grin at her.

"Well then, I guess it's a mystery as to why you don't scold me Mikoto-chan," she laughed while ruffling his hair playfully before picking her cup with Naruto doing the same.

"Too bad...too bad I can't do so, not in your case. You do need it," she whispered to herself before taking a sip while he picked up on her words, his lips curling down a bit.

"_You may do whatever you like Naru-kun. If you think telling Mikoto-chan is the best option here, go for it. But...please reconsider this, take her feelings into account. As a fellow mother, I know what she's going through and how she feels; that's why I only want to give her some time to pull herself together. As the hokage, I will not stop you from doing what you want, but as your mother...I ask you to take Mikoto-chan's feelings under consideration. She may not be able to hold herself after receiving the news, I'm afraid she might break down completely."_

Naruto suddenly remembered Kushina's words to him last night, the issue tugging his mind since he had stepped into Mikoto's apartment.

'_Damn it...'_ he thought in frustration, sipping his tea in with a jerk.

The blonde's face went red as he quickly gulped down the hot liquid before coughing lightly as he began to breathe through his mouth.

"Hah! My tongue!"

"What happened?" Mikoto asked quickly as she set her cup on the table, a worried look on her face.

"So hot, the tea is so hot!" he exclaimed making her sweat drop before a giggle escaped her lips as she rubbed his back soothingly.

"You're s-supposed to sip in slowly Naru-chan. Let me bring some water," still laughing, Mikoto was about to stand up when she felt him grab her wrist.

"Wait...Mikoto-chan," he called, the sheepish look on his face now replaced by a sudden serious one.

"Naruto-kun?" she blinked while he took in a deep breath.

"Okay, this is very hard for me, but listen to me carefully. I don't want you to interrupt me," he started with a fierce look in his eyes, taking her aback.

"What's up with y-"

She stopped when he placed a finger on her lips, making look at him in surprise.

"Please don't interrupt me Mikoto-chan. Just let me speak. Okay..." the jinchuriki again took a deep breath as he closed his eyes while the Uchiha continued to look at him in concern.

"The thing is...you see, it's about Itachi-nii. The thing is...well the thing is...Kami damn it," Naruto lowered his head, clutching his bangs in frustration as he cursed under his breath.

The jinchuriki lifted his head upon feeling soft hands on his hand, to see Mikoto looking at him with a worried expression on her face, silently encouraging him to go on. He was surprised she didn't say anything right then.

"Well, after the invasions, while you were still resting in the hospital, Itachi-nii and his partner Kisame had arrived at the village. I went to meet them along with Kakashi-sensei. Itachi-nii was very different that day, he was acting cold and distant, just like a member of Akatsuki. He said that whatever had happened a month ago at the Forest of Death was not his intention, that he was being controlled by Danzo, who possesses Shisui's Sharingan, by the use of a genjutsu called Koto Amatsukami. I'm not going to go into details right now, but after that, Itachi-nii said that he had come to capture me. I was still in a state of shock when he stabbed me with a kunai coated with a dangerous poison. I still can't believe it that he did so back then. After that, things happened and I was on the verge of death that day, that's the reason Jiraiya, Hinata-chan and Tayuya took me to Tanzaku town...where Kaa-chan was currently staying. There she treated me and I was fully healed within a week before we encountered Akatsuki and Orochimaru again. The rest you already know. Listen...please, I don't know what's the truth, I don't know if Itachi-nii is good as we all thought earlier or...not, but I did not want to hide anything from you," Naruto finished with a deep sigh, his eyes still closed. Slowly opening them, he was kinda surprised to see Mikoto still staring at him with a shocked look on her face- he had been expecting something worse actually.

Several seconds of tense silence ensued between the duo when he spoke again.

"Mikoto-chan, know well that Ita-"

"Who...w-who else knew?" Mikoto finally spoke, her voice cracking a bit as she blinked thrice quickly. Naruto averted his gaze as he lowered his head, his hand holder hers gently.

"Kaa-san, fire queens, ero-sennin, Kaa-chan, jiji and a few other jounin who were present at the site. What happened that day with Itachi-nii was declared as a SS-class secret by Kaa-san," he mumbled.

A few more seconds went by silently when much to his shock, he heard her giggle awkwardly.

"I...I see now, this m-must be some prank from all of you right? I mean, c'mon...all of this s-sounds so absurd. O-Of course Itachi-kun won't do that..." she continued to giggle while Naruto continued to stare at her with a serious look on his face. Lifting his hands, he placed them on her shoulder firmly.

"This is not a prank Mikoto-chan, I'm serious. All of this did happen, I would never play such a dirty pra-"

"You're lying!" the blonde's eyes widened when she yelled suddenly, tears now welling at the corner of her eyes.

"Look into my eyes, do you think I would lie to you Mikoto-chan?" Naruto asked her calmly as tears began to escape the confines of her eyelids while she looked into his eyes.

Her pupils began to tremble as she shook her head quickly, refusing to look into his eyes.

"You're lying! Y-You're lying! I-Itachi-kun would never do that!" Naruto held her shoulders tightly now as she lowered her head, more tears cascading down her cheeks, falling off her chin.

"Mikoto-chan, I know it hurts so much, but Itachi-nii was always a logical one. He always did things for a reason. Maybe he acted like that for a reason this time, to somehow...indirectly protect me? You can't lose h-"

"He stabbed you! HE TRIED TO KILL YOU!" the Uchiha matriarch screamed, now clutching his jounin vest tightly as he averted his gaze, he could not look into her eyes right now- they held so much pain and suffering; it was like looking into his own eyes.

"Why...w-why..." she murmured while biting on her lower lip, her head lowered as tears continued to fall on her lap.

Naruto's heart began to sink as she began to sob, her choked sobs soon turning into wails as she buried her face into his chest. He was now beginning to regret his decision...

"Why?! W-WHY?! Why is t-this ha-happening?!" she screamed into his chest, her arms tightly wrapped around his midsection. The blonde could do nothing but wrap his own arms around her in comfort, opting to stay silent...he did not know what to say, this was something she had to deal with on her own.

"F-First my clan...now h-him..." she mumbled with a hiccup while Naruto couldn't see her face, only her raven hair filling his vision as she hugged him tightly.

"W-What kind of a mother am I? T-This is all my f-fault..." she spoke in between her sobs and hiccups while Naruto had a pained look on his face as he rested his chin on her head.

"M-My whole f-family is gone...both o-of my sons g-gone...w-why?" her voice began to break down again, her body shaking with her sobs.

"W-Why am I e-even alive?...I don't w-want to live...I don't...I don't want to live!" she shouted into his vest again, her nails digging into his shoulders.

"I-It's your fault...why did you b-bring me back? Y-You should have never...n-never brought me back! Why N-Naruto-kun?" Mikoto was now clutching his vest as she slowly lifted her head, river of tears flowing down her cheeks as she gazed at him through her glossy eyes. There was a pleading look on her face as she bit her lower lip to control her sobs.

"Why?! Why?! WHY?!" the Uchiha began to shake him violently, her watery eyes boring into his oceanic ones.

"W-Why did you bring me back?! WHY?! TELL ME! WHO TO-"

"SHUT UP!"

...

Mikoto looked at Naruto wide eyed, tears still running down her cheeks as she stared at him, as if in a daze. The blonde grabbed her shoulders tightly as he glared at her, a fierce look in his deep sapphire orbs.

"What the fuck are you speaking?! Why did I bring you back?! WHY YOU ASK?! It's because you are precious to me! And if I have to do it again, I WILL do it! A thousand times if I have to! How can you break down like this?! Kaa-san said that you won't be able to handle this, that you would break down! I fought with her! I said no! NO! That Mikoto-chan is not weak! That she is a strong kunoichi, a strong woman! That she can handle it! That she deserves to know the truth about her son! That we would hurt her feelings if we hide things from her! Do you how much pressure I was feeling before telling you this?! I fucking trust you! I can't stand lying to you! Who gives you the right to spout out self loathing trash like that?! How can you say that I shouldn't have brought you back huh?! Don't you care about my feelings?! Don't you care how I feel in this?! Itachi-nii was special to me too! It's not like you're the only one hurting DAMMIT!" Naruto yelled in her face, now breathing heavily as he continued to glare at Mikoto while she looked at him in shock, fresh tears still falling off her chin.

"You don't want to live?!" he growled, shaking her through her shoulders.

"You don't want to live?! What about us?! Do we not matter to you even a bit?! How can you be so selfish?! Who says you failed as a mother?! You were the best mother a woman can be! I've admired you , looked upto you so much!" Mikoto gazed at him with a shell shocked look on her face as a single tear rolled down the blonde's cheek.

"_Naruto-kun...please calm down..."_ Ayumi spoke softly from within while the blonde continued to glare at Mikoto, panting to catch his breath.

"N-Naruto..." he narrowed his eyes as Mikoto mumbled softly with a sniff as her onyx eyes softened. Lifting her hand, she placed it on his cheek when he lowered his head, a look of regret coming onto his face.

"I...I'm sorry...I..." he wiped his left eye as Mikoto leaned forward to place her other hand on his cheek, a hazy look in her eyes.

The jinchuriki lifted his face, surprised at their sudden closeness as he averted his gaze- an apologetic look in his eyes.

"Mikoto-chan I'm so-"

...

Time seemed to freeze for Naruto upon feeling a pair of soft lips on his own, his eyes getting widened instantly.

The blonde sat there stunned, his mind going blank as Mikoto began to kiss him.

His mind quickly coming out of the overdrive, he quickly leaned back from the kiss- astounded look in his eyes.

"W-What are...M-Mikoto-chan?" he stuttered, not understanding what was going on while Mikoto just gazed at him with half-lidded eyes as she again leaned forward, pushing him back on the couch with her body weight.

"Naruto...please, just this once...I need this," she whispered, their noses touching when the Uchiha matriarch again leaned forward to capture his lips, kissing him passionately.

"N-No..." he murmured, forcing his head sideways, breaking the kiss.

"Mikoto-chan...we sho..." the blonde trailed as she began to kiss his jaw, zipping down his vest in the process .

"W-We can't...don't," he protested, trying to push her back while she didn't relent, nibbling on his neck while grinding her body against his. Having zipped down his vest, her hand went south before resting it on his shinobi pants- rubbing his shaft through the fabric.

"Stop!" Naruto pushed her back firmly, his eyes narrowed as he quickly sat up before standing. The blonde was panting a bit as he gazed at her before taking a few steps back, now zipping up his chunin vest.

"I...We c-can't do this Mikoto-chan. You're not in a right state of mind, please...control yourself," he spoke while her head was currently lowered, her face shadowed as she sat still on the couch.

"Get some sleep, I'll visit you in the morning Mikoto-chan," Naruto verbalized softly, still in a state of shock as he walked back towards the exit door. Glancing at her over his shoulder for a moment, he quickly closed the door.

The blonde walked a bit forward before supporting himself by the wall, a weary look on his face.

'_What was that? Why did she do that?'_ he thought with some panic, not understanding as to what had possessed her to do such a thing just now. She was Sasuke and Itachi's mother, obviously such a thing was absurd!

"_Naruto-kun, can you please go back to her right now?"_ the blonde's eyes widened as he pushed himself off the wall in surprise.

"_What are you talking about Ayumi-chan? Didn't you just saw what happened? Obviously Mikoto-chan needs to rest, she's traumatized. We can't possibly do such a thing," _he argued, rubbing a hand over his face.

"_Why? Don't you see that she needs physical comfort? She has been traumatized with this...you need to be there for her. If you are willing to tell her everything, you should also be willing to provide her that comfort, she desperately needs it right now."_

"_I can't...I just...I never saw her in this light. She...ever since I was a child, she took care of me...I came to see her as a mother I didn't have until recently. Kaa-san just arrived in my life, so I see her as a woman...but Mikoto-chan, I love her very deeply, but only as a mother. I'm willing to be there for her, always...but, not like this. She's Itachi-nii's mother...she...no, this is just not possible,"_ he sighed, shaking his head in denial while Ayumi went silent for a few seconds.

"_I...I won't force you then, but...but, just keep in mind that all that Uchiha woman has is you, and Kushina. You two are the only ones left for her...and only you can comfort her in a way that she so desperately needs. I understand your feelings, it must be awkward. But...that Uchiha woman is suffering badly, she is in a great deal of emotional turmoil. She needs you...Naruto-kun. You have suffered too, and there were times when no one was there for you, to comfort you, you know that loneliness...that pain. Do you want her bear that pain? That loneliness and suffering which destroys you from inside? That woman always tried her best to be there for you, shouldn't you be there for her now, when she needs you the most? She is strong, but one cannot always face the difficulties of life alone, everyone needs someone to be there for them...everyone. Just for tonight, consider her as a woman, your lover...love her, show her that you'll always be there with her, that she isn't alone, that there are people who care for her very much, who are happy for her to be alive."_

Naruto contemplated Ayumi's words as a sigh escaped his lips. He was always going on and on about how he would do anything for his precious people. If he thought about it, regardless of his feelings, he was in a romantic relationship with his mother. Mikoto was like his step mother, so why...why couldn't he do this for her? Just for tonight, to comfort her?

Fuck it!

Pushing himself off the wall decisively, Naruto grabbed the knob before opening the door. Slamming it behind him, he walked into the living room to find Mikoto lying on the couch, her face stuffed into a pillow as she cried into it.

"Mikoto-chan..." he called softly when she jerked her head upwards, quickly wiping her eyes to clear off her blurry vision.

"Na-Naruto? I-Is that you?!" she asked, hastily getting off the couch as she walked towards him unsteadily.

"I'm...I'm s-so sorry. I d-don't know...what came over me! Please forgive me," the Uchiha had a pleading look on her face, her hands clasped in front of her chest as she looked at him with watery eyes.

The jinchuriki stared at her with a soft look on his face, noticing the never ending tears on her cheeks as he stepped forward to take her slightly trembling hand into his.

Mikoto rested her other hand over his, a worried expression on her face.

"I'm so s-sorry...I'm so sorry. I sh-shouldn't have said all that...I don't know what c-came over me," she again pleaded, asking for his forgiveness when he wiped the pearly liquid off her cheeks with his thumb, a small smile on his face.

The Uchiha just leaned into his touch as she stepped forward to hug him tightly, burying her face into his chest.

"I'm so sorry, please don't leave me. I r-really don't know what c-came over me. A-And thank you for trusting me. Y-You don't know how much it m-means to me," she spoke quickly, rubbing her cheek against his chest as a contended sigh escaped her lips.

Holding her soft frame, the blonde lifted her face via her chin- now gazing into her half-lidded eyes.

"No...I'm sorry, I'm here for you, I'll always be Mikoto-chan," he whispered, cupping her cheek tenderly as she looked into his eyes.

"Promise?" her voice soft and gentle as Naruto smiled at her warmly.

"It's the promise of a life time," he mumbled before leaning forward to capture her moist lips, pulling her in by her waist.

* * *

><p><strong>DONE! 'Phew'...such a long chapter, it's 14K long, my longest chapter yet. And I guess you guys deserved it considering the late update. :)<strong>

**Anyways, I'm aware that most of you don't like the 'drama' that took place between Naruto and Mikoto, and you can complain about it all you want, but it was important for character development. **

**Also, 'Sasuke Retrieval Arc' will initiate in a couple of chapters. After that, there's going to be a time skip obviously- though as you can probably see, this fic has almost stopped following the canon, so things will be very different from manga.**

**I really hope you liked this chapter. Please ****review****, I'd greatly appreciate your response...lets me know that people are still loving this story. :D**

**N6023**


	50. One Big Family

**Chapter 50- One Big Family**

* * *

><p>"I'm so sorry, please don't leave me. I r-really don't know what c-came over me. A-And thank you for trusting me. Y-You don't know how much it m-means to me," she spoke quickly, rubbing her cheek against his chest as a contended sigh escaped her lips.<p>

Holding her soft frame, the blonde lifted her face via her chin- now gazing into her half-lidded eyes.

"No...I'm sorry, I'm here for you, I'll always be Mikoto-chan," he whispered, cupping her cheek tenderly as she looked into his eyes.

"Promise?" her voice soft and gentle as Naruto smiled at her warmly.

"It's the promise of a life time," he mumbled before leaning forward to capture her moist lips, pulling her in by her waist. Mikoto slowly closed her surprised eyes as she began to kiss back, her soft and velvety lips meshing into his.

Naruto leaned back slowly, a scarlet blush on his face as he stared at the Uchiha Goddess with a startled countenance.

"_Damn, her lips are so soft,"_ the blonde spoke inwardly.

"_Softer than mine Naruto?"_ immediately picking on Ayumi's dangerous sweet tone, he replied back nervously.

"_Of course not Ayumi-chan! Your lips are the softest!" _hearing her satisfied 'hmm' made him sigh in relief.

'_Phew, gotta keep my thoughts to myself.'_

"Naruto?" snapping out of his reverie, he smiled at the cute face Mikoto was making.

"Something wrong?" she asked, a small hint of fear in her voice.

"Maybe you should go back to your apartment, Kushina must be worried about you," she articulated, unable to completely mask the melancholic tone in her voice.

Seeing the jinchuriki smile at her so close made her heart skip a beat, which was saying something considering her heart was thumping against her chest as he held her by her waist.

"No, I'll spend the night here with you," the blush that adorned her cheeks made him chuckle.

"Having perverted thoughts Mikoto-chan?" Naruto questioned with a teasing smirk as she lowered her head.

"_Oh yes, she's getting wet down there just by imagining how you'll __sate__ her deepest sexual desires," _Ayumi commented slyly.

"Shut up," Mikoto muttered, their bodies pressed flush against each other. His eyes getting softened, the blonde lifted her face by her chin.

"You're beautiful Mikoto-chan, I've always admired you so much. Just know that I will always be there to support you," he spoke before leaning forward, kissing her more passionately this time as she responded immediately. The Uchiha matriarch clutched his vest as she deepened the kiss, her desire clearly felt by the jinchuriki. Wrapping her warm arms around his neck, her fingers began to sift through his blonde locks.

Breaking away from the kiss, Naruto began to kiss her neck as she leaned her head back, moaning his name in a timid sort of way. Ayumi knew Mikoto was feeling embarrassed at getting intimate with Naruto, but it was clear that she was enjoying it.

"Naruto..." she sighed, loving the way he was tending so gently to her, nibbling on the warm and smooth flesh of her neck.

"Oh yesss..."

Her moans encouraged him, making the situation less awkward as he began to undress her. Exposing her bare creamy shoulders, Naruto took a moment to admire her smooth and satiny skin.

'_Beautiful...'_ he couldn't help but say it again. Placing kisses on her shoulder, he suckled a bit on her collarbone making her moan loudly.

"Oh don't stop Naruto...please don't stop," her pleasurable moans and sighs were turning him on so much as he kissed down her cleavage, further pulling her dress down to reveal her bra. Standing up, he again kissed her with fervour, his tongue entering her moist cavern as she moaned into the wet kiss.

Her arms around his neck, Mikoto began to gently pull him with her, their tongues battling all the while. Their legs lightly hitting the couch, she sat down, pulling him with her as they continued to make out. Naruto meanwhile was rubbing her bare shoulders tenderly, trailing goose bumps on her soft skin.

His hands roaming down, he pulled down her tight knee length kunoichi slacks. Mikoto moaned loudly upon feeling his hand on her fleshy thigh as they broke the kiss. Naruto began to admire her creamy thighs with his hand while the Uchiha matriarch was now breathing heavily, her eyes closed as she moaned occasionally when he rubbed her inner thigh.

"Naruto..." she moaned, completely enjoying his gentle ministrations as she bit on her index finger while the whiskered blonde gazed at her with a smile.

'_I'm sure things are going to get awkward between us from now on, but this is for Mikoto-chan. And I can't say I'm not enjoying myself, she's beautiful...not to say sexy too, just look at that delicious skin.'_

Cupping her cheeks, he again began to neck her, not being able to resist her inviting neck. The blonde lightly bit on the flesh of her side neck, nibbling on it as she moaned loudly.

"Ohh Kami yes...you're so good," her voice was barely above a whisper while he leaned down, licking into her cleavage as she arched her back a bit. Taking advantage of it, Naruto wrapped his hands around her to find the hook of her bra.

She opened her eyes in surprise when he kissed her passionately. Mikoto was melting under his touch as she wrapped her thighs and arms around him, pulling him closer to her. The blonde unclasped her bra as his tongue explored her moist cavern, tasting her warm saliva while Mikoto kept moaning at the unbelievable pleasure, her toes curling at the wonderful kiss.

Getting rid of his own dark blue shirt, he stared at Mikoto's milky C-cup breasts in hunger before gently placing his hands on them. Mikoto arched her back as she moaned loudly upon feeling his hands on her mounds.

The blonde began to knead her soft tits in a circular pattern, occasionally pressing in on them making her breathing quicken as she just moaned at his ministrations. Letting go, he inserted a hand in her panties, rubbing her wet pair of pink lips down there.

"Ahhhh!" she moaned loudly, arching her back when he engulfed her left nipple with his mouth.

"Ahh Naruto!" Mikoto turned her head sideways, pulling his head closer as he sucked on her hardened bud. His other hand was tracing the delicious curves of her slender waist before moving back up to her other curvaceous breast, flicking her nipple between his thumb and index finger. Moving on to the other one, he suckled onto it with equal zeal, biting on it as she suddenly moaned loudly, tightly clutching a tuft of his blonde locks. Her thighs were locked around his waist tightly while he continued to tend to her delicious creamy tits.

"Na-Naruto..." she panted out when he left her nipple with a pop, lifting his head to look at her.

"P-Please...I can't wait anymore," Mikoto couldn't meet his gaze as she verbalized shyly, a crimson red blush on her face. Naruto's face however morphed into a serious one as he moved upwards, his face inches away from hers as he made her look at him in the eyes.

"Are you sure Mikoto-chan? We can stop if you want," the blonde uttered, cupping her cheek as she just stared into his deep sapphire orbs.

Too shy and embarrassed to admit it, the Uchiha matriarch just pushed herself upwards to kiss him passionately, taking the jinchuriki by surprise. Naruto, getting his answer, too began to kiss back while his hardened member grinding against her panties covered pelvis. The blonde shivered a bit upon feeling her soft hands tracing his body, her silky and feathery touch trailing goose bumps on his skin.

The duo continued to kiss as her hands lowered to reach his pants. Sliding them down, she began to rub his meat stick through his boxers making him groan in pleasure. Feeling herself getting in control, Mikoto pushed her tongue in his mouth, making out with him passionately. Pulling his boxers down somewhat hesitantly, her cheeks went a cute shade of pink.

'_It's so big...'_

Naruto broke the kiss abruptly as she began to stroke his dick lightly, a groan escaping his lips while she too was breathing heavily now, getting turned on by his groans. Her eyes were closed as she continued to stroke him.

"M-Mikoto-chan..."

"_Oh wow, she's really having some effect on Naruto. Must be something in her touch I guess,"_ Ayumi commented in an impressed tone while the jinchuriki pulled her panties somewhat unsteadily.

"Ahh..." Mikoto moaned loudly as his cock grazed against her glistening vaginal lips, her lips rubbing lightly with his. Still holding his prick, she began to rub its tip along her pussy lips as she kept moaning, her breathing coming in gasps while Naruto too couldn't stop himself from groaning- her soft hands felt so good on his warm shaft.

"Mikoto-chan..." the blonde whispered, his face buried into her side neck- the jinchuriki loving her delicious scent due to his enhanced senses. Mikoto felt herself shudder as his lips kept scuffing with her skin, his hot breath tingling her neck while her soft raven hair were mixed with his blonde locks.. Her left arm was wrapped around his neck as she pulled him in- she wanted to be in contact with him as much as possible. She couldn't get enough of the bursts of pleasure as their naked bodies rubbed against each other slickly; she couldn't get enough of this...contact with him. The Uchiha matriarch wanted him as closer to her as he could get.

Not being able to hold himself back anymore, Naruto began to push in making her bite her lower lip, not wanting to moan too loud in front of the blonde- embarrassment was something she was still aware of. Her hand not leaving his lukewarm cock, she too began to guide it in.

"Oh Narutooo..." a mixture of moan and a soft squeal escaped her lips as his member entered past its halfway before finally being buried in completely. Mikoto's eyes were clenched shut in extreme pleasure as she continued to bite her lower lip, her arms locked around his neck as she kept him as close to her as possible.

Feeling that she was holding herself back, Naruto bit on the flesh of her side neck.

"Ahhh~" a loud moan escaped her lips followed by a cute whimper while he began to nibble on the same spot, licking it with his tongue to finally give her a hickey. The blonde began to cup her right tit as he pulled out of her slowly making her breathe in deeply before again pushing in with a gentle jerk.

"Oh yesss~" she exhaled lowly, utterly enjoying the feel of his member moving inside of her like that.

"_That's right, steady and gentle as you go. Now start increasing the pace honey," _Ayumi spoke with an approving smile as she nodded to herself repeatedly. She was going to make one hell of a lover out of him, that she was sure of. Ten wives or twenty, all of them would be screaming his name in ecstasy when it came to things in bed.

Now establishing a gentle, but slowly increasing pace, Naruto began to suck on her breasts again while Mikoto could do naught but moan in exhilarating pleasure. Her warm and wet insides were making him lose his head as his thrusts began to pick up pace, the sounds of flesh hitting flesh now becoming noticeable.

"Oh Kami...don't s-stop Naruto, please don't," she panted, her legs wrapped around his waist while their sweaty bodies slipped against each, sending sparks of pleasure into their systems. Leaving her nipple with an audible pop, he leaned upwards to lightly bite on her earlobe.

A throaty moan escaped Mikoto's soft lips as he began to nibble on her earlobe, licking and biting while he continued to thrust in and out at a fast pace now.

"Ah, hah...yes yes yes, Naruto~" she kept chanting his name in between her loud moans as she neared her orgasm. Cupping his whiskered cheek beside her face lovingly, she made him look at her as their half lidded eyes met while the blonde continued to penetrate her, her juices having coated his rod.

Both of them leaned closer as they slammed their lips onto each other, kissing each other wildly when she went through her first orgasm of the night.

"Mhhmmm!" she moaned loudly into the kiss, their tongues into each other's mouths as she came violently, her inner walls clenching on his dick. The blonde continued to kiss her softly, enjoying the feel of her silky lips while Mikoto was on cloud nine, her mind currently foggy with pleasure.

Naruto leaned back to look at her as she slowly opened her eyes, inhaling deeply to catch her breath.

"Th-That was...amazing," she exhaled with a dreamy look in her eyes. The blonde just smiled lightly at her as he kissed her nose making her smile back, still lost in the hazy pleasure.

"Well, I'm still not finished," he verbalized with a teasing smirk making her eyes widen as she felt his member pulsing inside of her, hard as ever.

"W-Wait..." she stammered when he started to move.

"Wait N-Naruto ahhh!" she moaned abruptly while the blonde began to thrust in her again as she instinctively kissed him again- wrapping her legs around his waist.

"_Ooh she's in for a long night now,"_ Ayumi whistled with a light grin, currently eating popcorn in her tenant's mindscape.

* * *

><p><strong>The Following Morning: Uzumaki Apartment: 9 AM<strong>

* * *

><p>The front door opened a bit as a blonde head peeked in.<p>

"_Damn you Ayumi-chan, couldn't you have woken me up earlier?" _Naruto cursed as he stepped in, closing the door behind him as quietly as possible.

"_Hey you know I'm not a morning person! I was sleeping too," _the bijuu retorted with a huff as the blonde entered the living room, a nervous look on his face.

"_If Kaa-san get's the wind of what happened last night, I'm so dead,"_ he uttered inwardly with a shudder while Ayumi sighed in exasperation.

"_Geez, why are you so afraid of her? Just make up a lie will ya?"_

"_It's easy for you to say. She's my mother! And my lover too! I don't want to face her double wrath by telling her that I slept with her best friend!"_ Naruto argued as he quietly trekked through the room, towards the kitchen.

"_You were comforting her! Just tell her that!"_

"_Yeah! Comforting her by SLEEPING WITH HER!"_ he yelled inwardly comically before freezing upon hearing someone hum from the kitchen. The blonde gulped nervously as he stepped towards the kitchen before peeking around the wall.

A confused look crossed his eyes as he stared at a young girl standing in the kitchen, stirring the contents in a bowl set on a stove. She looked to be around in her mid teens, probably older than him by few years. She had shoulder length flowing hair, which were a dark shade of pinkish red. Her eyes, which were concentrated on the contents of the bowl, were a beautiful shade of bright green- her slit-like pupils black. There was a red scarf wrapped around her neck, something which he knew he had seen somewhere- and not once, quite often actually. Two fangs protruded out a bit from her upper lip- accentuating her cuteness while she hummed to herself.

Her figure was slender, with curves in the right places. She was wearing a summer dress, a sleeveless pale blue T shirt with two thin lacy straps going over her shoulders. The blonde couldn't help but glance at her impressive bust as he viewed her from the side. Following her upper dress were dark blue shorts, being a bit ragged at the bottom. A major portion of her creamy thighs along with her shapely legs were out for the leering eyes as the jinchuriki had to forcefully pull his eyes away from the sight.

"_Ooh, that's a fine specimen right there...even my anti-pervert Naruto-kun couldn't peel his eyes away,"_ Ayumi teased making him shake his head abruptly as he stood up.

"Excuse me?" Naruto entered the kitchen with a neutral look on his face, startling the girl as she jerked her head towards him.

"Oh Naruto-sama!" she chirped with a bright smile as he looked at her in confusion.

'_Naruto-sama?'_ he sighed, now realizing that she must a civilian fan girl or something who was merely trying to seduce him by wearing provocative clothes. Though he did admit she had one nice figure, still he was confused as to how she was able to get in the apartment in the first place. No one except for him and Kushina, and some of others who they trusted could enter their house.

"Who are you?" the blonde asked with a serious countenance as her smile dropped a bit, before she smirked at him deviously.

"Oh right, you have never seen me in this form before. Well take a wild guess," she spoke, winking at him cutely while the jinchuriki just narrowed his eyes.

"Form? I have never seen you before," he uttered, his voice getting cold as she pouted at him with puffed cheeks.

"You're so mean! At least try to remember!" the girl huffed, crossing her arms in front of her breasts- emphasizing on her already visible cleavage. Naruto managed to keep a straight look on his face despite the obvious 'distraction'. Though judging by her way of clothing, it did look like she was trying to seduce him.

His eyes however widened when they landed on the stitched swirling sign of the Uzumaki clan on her scarf.

Seeing him looking intently at her scarf, the girl smiled as she pointed at the insignia.

"Now you remember something?" she asked with a look of anticipation in her eyes as the blonde looked at her with a surprised look on his face.

"You're from the Uzumaki clan?" she hung her head in shame, a disappointed sigh escaping her lips.

"You're so mean Naruto-sama," the pink haired beauty murmured while Naruto could swear he had seen that scarf somewhere before.

'_Damn it, why can't I remember?!'_ he thought in frustration before exhaling deeply.

"Okay look, I've been through some serious shit lately, so sorry for not remembering you. And I'm really not in the mood for puzzles right now, so can you please tell me who you are?" the jinchuriki articulated as he rubbed the back of his neck while a look of childish anger crossed the girl's face.

"Fine then, just summon Kiyohime and she'll tell you who I am?!"

"You know Kiyohime-chan?" Naruto questioned, a startled look on his face as she just 'hn'-ed in response.

"_Ayumi-chan?"_ he called in his mindscape.

"_Well you're in for a surprise koi, why not try it?"_

Shrugging to himself, the blonde went to the living room, biting his thumb in the process while the teen girl just followed him. Going through a set of five hand seals, he gently placed his right hand on the floor.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu."**

POOF!

A puff of smoke appeared as it slowly unveiled itself.

"Well here she is. So-" turning to the girl in the process, he stopped speaking abruptly upon finding her to have just...vanished, a small puff of smoke where she was standing.

'_Where'd she go?'_ Naruto thought with narrowed eyes when he heard the same voice from behind him.

"I'm here Naruto-sama," he turned around for his eyes to widen in shock. There was the girl, standing with an amused smile on her face as the smoke around her disappeared gradually.

"_Yeah baby, you got taken for a ride!"_ Ayumi grinned while it took him a second to figure it out.

"Kiyohime-chan?" he asked, partially masking his surprise while she nodded with a light grin.

"The one and only Naruto-sama," she uttered before pouting at him.

"I can't believe you didn't recognize me," Naruto just shook his head as he stepped forward.

"I thought only the Fifth Blaze dragons were supposed to have a human form?" the whiskered blonde questioned as she smiled mischievously.

"Tee hee! Nope, non elemental dragons like me possess a human form too. So how do I look?" she winked at him while clasping her hands in front of her chest, smiling cutely at him as she walked upto him.

"You look beautiful Kiyohime-chan," he spoke with a small genuine smile when her smile dropped instantly. Just when Naruto was about to think he had said something wrong, her face erupted into a furious blush as she quickly shook her head.

"R-R-Really?" the jinchuriki laughed a bit awkwardly as he put a hand on her shoulder.

'_She's a bit weird, kinda reminds me of how Hinata-chan used to be,'_ he thought to himself before smiling at her.

"Of course Kiyohime-chan. Why do you think I would lie to you? You're cute enough in your dragon form but boy does this takes the cake!" he grinned foxily as she smiled at him with glossy eyes before lowering her head.

'_There he goes again, unintentionally throwing out his natural charm,'_ Ayumi thought while shaking her head, chuckling lightly to herself.

"Well, I'm happy you think so highly of me Naruto-sama," Kiyohime muttered to herself softly as she wiped her eyes. Noticing this, the blonde squinted his eyes as he again placed a hand on her shoulder, making her stiffen up a bit.

"Oi, you okay? What's the matter?" Naruto asked, confused as to why would she tear up all of a sudden?

"N-Nothing, I'm just really happy," the pink haired girl verbalized with a bright smile, a light blush on her cheeks.

"I see, well I'm happy to see you too. So I assume Kaa-san summoned you?" he questioned before smelling something.

"Yep! Though she did look a bit angry with you earlier in the morning," she finished with a thoughtful look on her face when the blonde pointed towards the kitchen.

"Um, I think the stuff you were cooking is gone for good," he uttered making her eyes widen as she too suddenly smelled something.

"Oh no!" Kiyohime exclaimed as she dashed into the kitchen. Naruto followed her calmly, only to find her sitting in a corner of the kitchen while sniffing to herself, a dark cloud over her. Walking to the bowl, he pinched his nose while staring at the burnt miso soup. Glancing at Kiyohime crouched up at the corner in amusement, he lifted the bowl before emptying its contents in the bin and putting it in the sink.

"Okay, problem solved. No need to cry now over some burnt food. We can prepare it again," Naruto spoke with a small smile as he walked to her before crouching to her level.

"But that was supposed to be your breakfast! I'm such a mess up," she muttered to herself with a sniff while the jinchuriki just scratched his head a bit.

"I see, but I've already eaten my breakfast at my friend's place. So you don't have to worry, I'm not hungry," lifting her face via her chin, he smiled lightly while inwardly admiring as to how cute she looked.

"Really? You've already eaten?" she questioned with a somewhat relieved look on her face as he nodded with a grin.

"Kushina-sama had appointed me to take care of your breakfast. So I wanted to do my best for you," she murmured to herself with a dark blush on her face while he chuckled lightly, wiping her moist cheeks- further deepening her blush.

"No problem Kiyohime-chan, just knowing that you tried your best for me is enough. So, how are you? How are things back in **Ryuchidou** (Dragon Cave)?" he questioned, helping her stand when her smile dropped a bit.

"Well things are...good. Yeah, things are good," she stammered a bit, a smile on her face while he immediately picked up on her fake smile. Frowning inwardly, the blonde put a hand over her shoulder.

"Is something wrong?" he asked with a serious expression when she looked at him in the eyes with a surprised look.

"W-Why would you ask that? Of c-course everything's alright!" she spoke hurriedly with a smile, her eyes closed- something which made him furrow his brows.

"You're a terrible liar Kiyohime-chan. Its fine if you don't feel comfortable telling me something personal. Just know that I'll be there for you if you ever need me. If you guys are loyal to our clan, then I, Uzumaki Naruto of the Uzumaki clan, am loyal to the Elemental Dragons too!" he exclaimed with a grin. There was a small amount of amusement in his voice but she could tell he was serious, she knew the jinchuriki never said these things lightly.

"But I'm a non elemental dragon!" Kiyohime whined with a playful frown on her face as he waved his hand non chalantly.

"Bah! You know what I mean," he stuck out his tongue childishly making her giggle.

"You look funny when you do that," she spoke in between her giggling as he smiled at her.

"Anyway, you said something about Kaa-san getting angry with me?" Naruto questioned with a somewhat nervous tone in his voice.

"Yeah, she looked irritated with you. She was grumbling that you could've informed her via the seal as to where you were last night. She said she had tried to contact you and something like that. You did another one of your pranks didn't you Naruto-sama?" Kiyohime asked while wiggling her eyebrows as he just laughed nervously.

"Ehehehe...naw~, not this time."

"_Dammit she's right. I could've used the Uzushio seal last night to inform Kaa-san. But why couldn't she contact me?" _the whiskered blonde questioned inwardly as Ayumi rubbed the back of her neck, a sheepish expression on her face.

"_Well, I kinda blocked the telepathic connection between you two since you were busy with that Uchiha woman."_

"_WHAT?! Why the hell would you do that?! And how did you even do that?" _he enquired with an annoyed look on his face while Kiyohime wondered as to why he was sporting a diverted look on his face.

"_Duh! I'm the one who created the seal, I can tweak it whenever I want! Besides, I only did it for your convenience. If you had responded to her right then, all she would've heard were your groans of ecstasy and how you were saying 'Oooh Mikoto-chan'...'Ahhh Mikoto-chan'..." _the bijuu mocked making his left brow twitch, a light blush creeping onto his cheeks.

"_Fine fine! You don't have to mock me,"_ he grumbled.

"NARUTO-SAMA!"

"WHAT?!" Naruto yelled back instinctively before noticing the look of anger on Kiyohime's face as she pouted at him.

"Hehe, yeah...sorry I kinda got lost. What were you saying?" he asked with a sheepish expression as she kept glaring at him.

"Um...Kiyohime-chan?" he called, confused as to why she was giving him an angry look.

"Your stomach just growled," she accused, startling him as he looked at his stomach.

"You were lying to me weren't you? You haven't eaten anything!" she exclaimed as he shook his head furiously.

"What! Of course not! I've already eaten and boy am I stuffed!" Naruto patted his stomach with a nervous laugh, nodding to himself when it groaned again. The blonde went quiet, an embarrassed blush on his face as she began to tear up, her eyes getting glossy.

"O-Oi! Why are you crying now?! I'm sorry I lied to you," he spoke quickly.

"I'm not crying! I was just chopping some onions earlier! I don't cry!" she articulated while staring at him, fanning her eyes in the process- her cheeks puffed into a frown.

"Yeah, I believe you on that," Naruto muttered with a roll of his eyes when he slung an arm over her shoulder.

"Since I'm hungry, let's go to Ichiraku ramen!" he grinned at her as she glanced at him in confusion.

"What's ramen?" Kiyohime asked innocently.

...

...

The look of horror on Naruto's face was clearly screaming out- 'OH! MY! GOD!'.

Next thing Kiyohime knew, she was being dragged down the stairs of the apartment as she pleaded him to stop.

"_Boy, another ramen fanatic in the making. Why am I not overjoyed?"_ Ayumi mumbled, a bowl of pork ramen in her hands as she ate it with fervour.

* * *

><p><strong>Ichiraku Ramen Stand: Half An Hour Later<strong>

* * *

><p>"Wow! This is so good! Why didn't Kushina-sama ever told me about this?!" Kiyohime asked, her mouth full as she swiped clean another dango stick. Anko was sitting beside her with her own plate of dango, a satisfied look on her face as she chewed on her dumplings with pride.<p>

"Damn you Anko-chan," sitting beside the duo was Naruto, eating his tenth bowl of ramen half heartedly as he glared heatedly at the purple haired jounin. Anko just flashed him a grin as she pulled out a scorecard from her trench coat- 'DANGO- 21—RAMEN-19.'

The blonde inwardly cried anime tears as he turned to Ayame standing in front of him.

"Hey isn't this illegal or something for people to bring food from other shops and eat it here Ayame-nee-chan?" he asked while a disappointed sigh escaped her lips.

"Sadly there's no such rule," Ayame exhaled as she too looked pointedly at Anko.

"Oh stop brooding like children you two. There are many people who would prefer ramen over dumplings," Teuchi came in from behind.

"Find me those people then cuz I'm losing here on the scorecard," the jinchuriki mumbled sadly.

"Here Naruto-sama!" Kiyohime offered him a dango stick as he turned his head the other way- anime tears streaming down his cheeks while Anko burst out in laughter.

"_I'm telling you Ayumi-chan, this world is coming to an end!"_ he inwardly exclaimed making the bijuu sweat drop at his antics.

"_Sure, why not just send a chain letter to Akatsuki saying they don't need to wreak havoc anymore," _she spoke in a bored tone.

"There you are, should've known I'll find you here," the blonde turned to notice Kurenai standing behind him with a frown on her face.

"Oh hey Kurenai-chan. How's it going? Come and eat with us," he smiled while she just sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

"Naruto-kun, how can you be so careless? The others have already started. Have you forgotten about the joint training schedule? I was sent by Mikoto-sama to fetch you," the genjutsu mistress uttered making his eyes widen in realization.

'_Damn! With what happened last night, I completely forgot about the training,'_ Naruto cursed himself inwardly as he stood up with a sigh, the light aura around him taking a complete turn.

"Yeah, I'm sorry," he muttered, his expression turning serious, something which startled the others present around him. Pulling out the money from his ever so famed wallet 'Gama-chan', he set it on the counter, giving Ayame a small smile.

"You want to come Kiyohime-chan?" the blonde asked as he turned to the pink haired girl finishing with her last dango stick.

"Huh? Sure!" she chirped, her mouth full of dango making the jinchuriki smile at the childish excitement in her eyes. She reminded of him, when he was free of any responsibility and his world revolved around gaining recognition from the villagers- the only difference being her bright genuine smile.

Though his cheeks gained a slight pink hue as he turned to Kurenai. Leaning towards her, he whispered something into her ear. Anko watched in amusement as the genjutsu mistress's cheeks went red slowly while Kiyohime looked on in confusion.

"I see, sure," Kurenai nodded as the jinchuriki pulled back before turning to the dragon girl.

"I want you to follow Kurenai-sensei and do as she says. Then you can come with her to the training ground," he uttered making her nod slowly in confusion.

"Well, see you later then," the blonde ducked down the flaps at the entrance as he exited the stand when he heard Anko's voice.

"Wait, I'll go too. I'm free for now anyway. It's fun scaring those little genin anyway," she appeared out of the flaps with a grin, a dango stick in her mouth.

Meanwhile, Kurenai turned to Kiyohime- a smile on her face.

"It's been a while, huh Kiyohime-chan? Though I have to say I'm surprised, we thought dragons only possessed the human form when they ascended to the group of Fifth Blaze?" she questioned as the pink haired girl stood up, her smile dropping a bit.

"Yes, it's like that with the elemental dragons, but not in the case of non elemental ones. Just now, actually yesterday I achieved this human form. It seems all of them hid it from me, no one told me that dragons like us can achieve human forms while being a rookie claw," her head was lowered, a sad look in her eyes when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Hidden from you?" Kurenai asked with narrowed eyes as she shook her head quickly.

"Just leave it be Kurenai-chan. So why did Naruto-sama asked me to follow you? Do you need my help in anything?" Kiyohime questioned while the raven haired jounin just dropped the topic, having sensed that it was a sensitive one for the bubbly girl.

"Well, let's just say that you need a change of wardrobe," she articulated as the pink haired teen just tilted her head in confusion, her big eyes full of curiosity.

"What's a wardrobe?" the genjutsu mistress felt like face palming herself, of course Kiyohime won't know the general stuff. She was a dragon who had just seen the human world after Naruto had signed the summoning contract.

"In other words, you need to change your clothes. They are...a bit too revealing. I now understand that since you just attained your human form, you aren't familiar with the normal clothing here," Kurenai verbalized making the dragon pout at her cutely.

"But clothes make me uncomfortable! We as dragons don't have to wear clothes. The only reason I even wore these was because I noticed humans didn't walk around without clothes! So I found the shortest of them to cover myself," Kiyohime spoke innocently.

'_I'm so glad she didn't find any undergarments, or she would just be walking around in them. There is no limit to the number of perverts in this village...especially Jiraiya-sama.'_

"Okay okay, just keep your voice down," the crimson eyed jounin checked if anyone else had listened in, also relieved to notice that Ayame and Teuchi were in the back.

"Anyway, let's just get going. I'll explain to you along the way, though make sure to not get too excited. Kami knows people will freak out if they hear a girl shouting about humans this, humans that," rolling her eyes, she grabbed Kiyohime's elbow before pulling the girl with her.

"I don't get excited! I just get ecstatic!"

"It's the same thing!"

* * *

><p><strong>Training Ground Three: Around 5 PM<strong>

* * *

><p>"Phew...I'm exhausted! Man these gravity seals sucks!" Kiba wheezed out, currently lying on the grass as he panted heavily.<p>

"Yeah, I agree with you," Ino murmured with a weary look on her face.

"This is so troublesome."

"I couldn't eat my last chip because of this seal...I'm so tired. I could eat a ton of barbeques right now!"

"I'm tired. Why? Because of these gravity seals."

"Yeaaah, nice observation there Shino."

Most of the genin were sprawled on the ground, all of them panting heavily as they rested their burning muscles.

'_These gravity seals are really something. I don't feel like I'm wearing any weights, but still...I feel extremely heavy. Even taking a single step puts a strain to my muscles,'_ Neji thought as he breathed deeply, staring into the sky while sweat poured down the side of his face. All of them were given new gravity seals by Mikoto this morning, the Uchiha then ordering them to get used to the seals. And much to their chagrin, the whole day was spent with them trying to walk only!

Neji had never felt so embarrassed in his life, and he knew the others shared that sentiment too. Struggling to just walk in front of jounin like Kakashi, Kurenai, Asuma...and even Gai was embarrassing as hell. And it was pushed up a notch in the presence of a legendary kunoichi like Uchiha Mikoto.

The Hyuga turned his head sideways to watch Lee sparring with Kakashi.

THUP!

"I've already told you, it's more than just blind direct attacks!" the silver haired jounin exclaimed as he grabbed Lee's blurred fist. Pulling the green clad genin, he delivered a palm thrust to his chest- sending Lee back at surprising force.

KHRRD!

"I'll try harder then!" Lee exclaimed with a serious look on his face as flipped to his feet, wiping the blood off his chin.

"Read my moves, try to catch onto my reflex actions. There's a difference between a taijutsu powerhouse and a taijutsu specialist. No matter how much your enemy trains his body, there are always weak spots...you have to find it amidst the battle. Use your mind, try to create diversions. Straight attacks rarely work in the world of shinobi!" nodding with a determined look in his eyes, Lee charged forward.

Smirking at his teammate, Neji averted his gaze towards Naruto and Gai with Mikoto observing the two.

"Harder! Your punches are not strong enough!" Gai exclaimed loudly with a serious countenance as he repeatedly blocked a rapid flurry of punches from Naruto- both of them standing in small drawn circles in front of each other.

It was an exercise introduced by Gai himself. Both of them had to remain in their small circles with Naruto trying to punch the jounin. Most of the shinobi did the mistake of using body weight to increase the strength of their punches- something which, although did gave them more control over the punch, disturbed their body balance- creating an opening for a counter attack.

And as the blonde found himself, it was difficult to just stand at one place and try to punch a taijutsu specialist like Gai, and on top of wearing his gravity seals that is.

"Damn!" Naruto growled as he punched with all he got, his arms moving at blurred speeds while Gai continued to either block or parry them away easily- both of them standing still with only their upper body being exerted.

WHOOSH!

Gai suddenly sidestepped to dodge Naruto's punch as the blonde, going with the momentum fell forward. The jinchuriki groaned as he sat up, panting a bit.

"See? That's what I'm talking about. Noticing that your punches weren't having any affect on me, you tried to increase their strength by using your body weight to add to your net momentum. It was all alright when I was blocking. But the moment I dodged, your body lost its balance because of the momentum, giving me an opportunity to counterattack- something which could make the difference between life and death," Gai explained with a grave expression while the blonde, though inwardly surprised at the knowledge of the taijutsu specialist, nodded with him.

"_Damn this weirdo knows his stuff,"_ Ayumi whistled in appreciation while Naruto took his position back in the circle.

Mikoto, who was watching the duo nodded with a small smile.

'_I see now. This exercise not only focuses on the speed of your punches, but your upper body strength also- and in such a way so that one doesn't sacrifice their balance for added strength. Great work Gai, as expected from you!'_

Glancing at the blonde, a pink tint spread across her cheeks as she stared at Naruto. Things between them were...awkward since they had seen each other at the training ground after the blonde had arrived late. The air was tense between them, and every time their eyes met- Mikoto couldn't help the blush that threatened to cover her whole face. It was ridiculous! She was feeling like a teen all over again.

Every time she looked into those deep oceanic orbs, the Uchiha couldn't help but remember how he had pleased her last night. She still remembered his touch, the feel of it, she still remembered how his hands and lips were all over her body as he loved her, oh so gently and lovingly. Truly she hadn't felt so well in her life. Even Kushina had commented as to how her face was glowing when she went to her office to get the gravity seals from her in the morning.

'_Damn it I shouldn't think like that. It was just him trying to comfort me...after all, I was the one who made the first move. Let's just hope things get back to normal soon.'_

Pushing her thoughts aside, she turned to look at Asuma and Tenten as the former taught how to apply chakra to weapons to the kunoichi.

Meanwhile, Kurenai was busy with Sakura and Kin.

"Do keep in mind that not all genjutsu can be broken. Breaking from a high ranking genjutsu is difficult, but even more difficult is to stand that genjutsu if you can't seem to get out of it. Mostly genjutsu nowadays are casted to torture your mind, to find your weaknesses and manipulate you according to it. You need to have the willpower to avoid any damage to your mental health," Kurenai lectured with a serious countenance, a panting Sakura and Kin in front of her.

It was clear they too were having difficulty with the gravity seals. Sakura nodded, currently standing with Kin crouched behind her- an exhausted look on her face.

"How the hell...is she still able to stand and train like that?" Kiba questioned in surprise as he stared at Sakura.

"Well forehead's been training extensively with Kakashi-sensei since the invasion mainly in taijutsu and chakra control. I'm not much surprised frankly," Ino uttered, her eyes closed as she breathed in deeply to catch her breath- currently lying beside Kiba.

'_Though can't say I'm not jealous.'_

"Damn this sucks! Why the fucking hell did they have to keep us on the sidelines?!" Tayuya growled in frustration, an impatient frown on her face as she sat with her back against a tree- away from the others.

"Well it's because we haven't completely recovered and need to give our bodies rest," Hinata pointed out with an amused smile, sitting beside Tayuya.

"This looks like fun!" Kiyohime exclaimed with a bright smile, also sitting beside Hinata as the trio just observed the others.

"Not fun to me Kiyohime-chan, don't you see how others are faring?" the Hyuga heiress spoke while staring at her comrades in pity.

"No no! Even though they are struggling, still it must be fun to know that others are struggling with them, and that they are growing strong together," the pink haired girl uttered with a smile making Hinata and Tayuya look at her in surprise.

"Ya know, for a childish face, you talk quite maturely sometimes," Tayuya muttered making Kiyohime puff her cheeks in anger as she glared at the ex-Oto nin.

"I don't have a childish face!" she huffed in annoyance.

"Yeah, rarely would be the correct word," the red haired kunoichi murmured under her breath while Hinata giggled at their antics.

"You know Kiyohime-chan, you look like Sakura-chan's older sister with your matching pink hair and green eyes huh?" she articulated making the dragon girl glance at Sakura.

"Really? I didn't notice that...Oh Kami! You're right! She does have my pink hair and green eyes! How is that possible?!" the look of frightening curiosity and shock on Kiyohime's face as she flailed her hands above her head was funny to say the least. Hinata burst out giggling while Tayuya just sweatdropped.

"You noticed it _now_? What are those big anime eyes for then, trying to look cute?" the red haired kunoichi asked with an exasperated sigh, a bored look on her face as she cupped her chin. Kiyohime turned to her with a juvenile frown as she pointed an accusing finger at her.

"You're mean! I don't like you!" she declared as Tayuya grinned predatorily at her.

"Feeling's mutual dragon punk," she verbalized making the pink haired teen gasp.

"Tayuya-chan!" Hinata exclaimed with a scolding frown before turning to Kiyohime with a smile.

"You don't have to take her seriously Kiyohime-chan. She can be rude at times. She doesn't have many friends and is usually grouchy to strangers."

"W-WHO'S GROUCHY?!" Tayuya yelled in comic irritation while Kiyohime just stared at her.

"You don't have friends?" she asked innocently, tilting her head as the red haired kunoichi's left eye twitched- opting to stay silent.

"No, she has friends, like me and Kin-chan. But some more good friends would be better. Then she won't need to be in a bad mood all the time," Hinata had a smile as she lightly nudged Tayuya in the side as a vein popped on the flute user's forehead.

"I don't need any friends! And stop being a jerk!" she exclaimed with shark teeth when Kiyohime extended her hand towards her with a genuine smile.

"Then I will be your friend too. My name is Kiyohime, it's nice to meet you," she spoke making Hinata look at her surprise while Tayuya just stared at the hand, not sure how to react.

The Hyuga heiress smiled as she turned to Tayuya. Grabbing her hand, she lifted it towards Kiyohime's.

Tayuya looked at Hinata before turning back to a smiling Kiyohime.

"Uh...yeah," she scratched her cheeks in embarrassment while shaking the pink haired teen's hand.

Hinata smiled warmly as she stared at their shaking hands, remembering her own childhood when she didn't have a friend. She knew how Tayuya felt, she did know how it hurt to be all alone, without any friends. She didn't get one, not until team eight was formed. Kiba and Shino were her first real friends, and they were very precious to her. And Naruto, he was so much to her, much more than a friend.

The Hyuga heiress gazed around the training field, staring at all of them as her eyes softened.

'_I love this, this atmosphere...it's so warm, like we are all one big family.'_

She smiled at seeing Kiba help Neji stand up.

'_Supporting each other...'_

She parted a strand of her hair from her left eye before glancing at Naruto and Sakura training themselves seriously.

'_Getting strong together.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Timeskip: One Week Later: Training Ground Three<strong>

* * *

><p>"You guys ready?" Mikoto asked calmly as Naruto stood opposite to a battle ready Hinata and Sakura.<p>

"Heh...of course, it's my first time sparring with Hinata and Sakura-chan after all," the blonde replied with a confident smirk.

"Aren't you getting overconfident?" Sakura smirked back with Hinata staring at him with a serious look on her face.

Around them were other genin as they trained with jounin, some of them sparring with each other.

"Maybe I am, you going to do somethin' about it?" he mocked while Mikoto just rolled her eyes at their verbal assaults, they were still kids after all.

"Fine, go ahead and blast each other. Remember this is a taijutsu only spar," she spoke, her arms folded over her chest.

Nodding without taking his gaze from his two opponents, the blonde whizzed forward with a blur. Sakura and Hinata crouched into their stances, their eyes narrowed as he approached them, the trio not wearing any gravity seals.

A startled look crossed Sakura's eyes as she caught onto a blurred palm nearing her gut, too late to react as Naruto was in front of her within seconds.

Whoosh!

She stared in surprise when his hand went past her stomach from the side as he dodged Hinata's palm thrust towards his wrist at the last second.

KHRRR!

Naruto skidded to a halt behind them, a smirk on his face while Hinata stood in front of Sakura- her Toyotama Byakugan activated.

"Couldn't see me Sakura-chan? Hinata won't always come to your rescue," he uttered as the two kunoichi turned to him.

"Damn...I can't follow him. He's very fast," Sakura muttered, clenching her fists when Hinata whispered something in her ear making the pink haired genin look at her.

"I guess I'll give it a try, that should work," she spoke with a nod.

"It'll work, don't worry about that," Hinata articulated when the blonde again dashed towards them.

This time the Hyuga heiress leaped in front of Sakura, the petals of her Toyotama Byakugan spinning as she thrust her palm towards Naruto's approaching one.

SZAK!

Their palms slammed into each other in a burst of chakra as her other palm went at his chest at blurry speeds. The blonde twisted his body to avoid her palm as he launched his left palm at her mid section. The pink petals in her eyes spinning rapidly, Hinata grabbed his approaching wrist in a blur.

Naruto's eyes widened a bit at that when he felt his chakra points around the wrist being shut off. Grabbing her wrist by snaking his hand around hers in a display of impulsive strength, he went for her shoulder when Hinata again dodged him by leaning sideways- her feet dragging on the ground violently.

The blonde looked on as Sakura's fist neared his chest from behind Hinata, whose wrist he still had in hold with his right hand. Not seeing the need to dodge, the jinchuriki made to block her punch with his left hand.

THAP!

A resounding smack was produced as Naruto found himself flying back due to the devastating force of the punch- her fist having slammed into his left palm.

Flipping himself in midair, the blonde landed on his feet as he skidded back several meters due to the force of the punch. He lifted his head to stare at a smirking Sakura in surprise, his wide eyes clearly expressing it.

'_What was that...did she just burst me with chakra in that punch? Well she was training with Kakashi-sensei to learn Kaa-chan's technique. But to think she would have reached to this level in just a week...'_ he thought, now slowly standing up as he shook his hand to get the numbness away.

"Well that was one heck of a punch..." he muttered to himself after glancing at his hand.

"Not so overconfident now are you?" Naruto pulled his head to look at his former teammate, smirking back at her.

"Yeah, I underestimated...both of you actually. To think that Hinata can keep track of me with my gravity seals off, and keep up with me for that matter...wow, I'm impressed!" he exclaimed as a rosy hue developed on the Hyuga's cheeks.

"And for you to knock me back with such ease...the effects of your training are clear Sakura-chan. Man this is gonna be fun," he proclaimed with an excited smirk before settling back into the universal taijutsu stance.

"Now c'mon, your turn this time," smirking at the 'c'mon' motion from Naruto's left hand, Hinata bolted forward.

"Look for an opening Sakura-chan," the pink haired genin nodded as she followed the lavender eyed kunoichi.

'_Well would you look at those two, they do make quite a pair. With Hinata's speed and her deadly accuracy with the gentle fist along with her Toyotama Byakugan, and with Sakura's strength...they sure can't be taken lightly,'_ Mikoto deduced with a nod as she turned to the others.

Looking at Kin and Tayuya fighting Kurenai with genjutsu only; Shino, Shikamaru and Ino against Kakashi using ninjutsu only; and finally Neji, Kiba and Lee being pitied against Gai, Tenten training with Asuma- a smile graced her lips.

'_They are stronger than we used to be at their age. This was a great move Kushina,'_ she thought before sighing as she spotted Chouji hiding behind a tree, sneakily eating his potato chips.

'_Though that one needs an incentive.'_

POOF!

"Kyaa!" Chouji squeaked out in a not so manly way when Mikoto appeared in front of him in a puff of smoke. His eyes widened in horror upon noticing his packet of chips to have just vanished.

"Now Chouji-kun, how many times have I told you to concentrate on your training. You can eat as much as you want later too," she chided as the Akimichi lowered his head.

She quirked a brow upon watching his lips curl down as he muttered something incoherent.

"What's wrong Chouji-kun?" Mikoto bent down to put a gentle hand on his shoulder, a smile on her face.

"What's the use anyway? All of them are so much stronger than me. Even Sakura is so strong now..." he muttered as the Uchiha went silent for a few seconds.

'_I see...'_

"Well here's a deal then. I'll start supervising your training from now on. You promise that you'll give your best in it, and I'll treat you to barbeque frequently after training. How does that sound?" a mischievous smile on her face when Chouji snapped his face up, his eyes lighting like he had hit a jackpot.

"Really? You would do that?"

"Of course, I am in charge of this training schedule after all. So I have to make sure that everyone gets strong. So what do you say Chouji-kun?" she asked as he grinned at her, standing up in a flash.

"You're on! Tell me what I have to do Mikoto-sama!" she giggled at his antics before standing up.

'_No thing a better bribe than food for an Akimichi.'_

"For starters, run ten laps around this training ground," Mikoto uttered as he nodded quickly before rushing off, leaving dust behind.

'_Well that was fast, I was expecting some whining.'_

Everyone present in the training ground looked on baffled as Chouji ran around at record breaking speeds- at least for him.

"What in the name of holy pig has gotten into him?" Ino questioned with a dumb look on her face as she stared at her teammate running around.

Shikamaru sighed as he turned to Mikoto, a startled look crossing his face as he stared at her eating Chouji's chips while she waved at him with a smile.

"Troublesome."

Meanwhile, Chouji was huffing as he continued to sprint forward- air coming out of his nostrils like a steam engine.

'_I've got to do this, I would NEVER give up.'_

"WAIT FOR ME BARBEQUE-CHA~N!"

* * *

><p><strong>Hokage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>"You called Hokage-sama?"<p>

Kushina lifted her head, her eyes narrowed while there was a piece of paper in her hands.

"I want you to immediately call the sandaime," her voice was stern as the Anbu standing before her, slid her Neko mask sideways- showing her face

"Something wrong?" Yugao asked while the paper in Kushina's hands quickly drenched into water before the kage crumbled it completely in her clenched fist.

"Last night a guard on patrol duty was found dead outside the east gate. It was a message from Orochimaru. He's given us an offer...trade Uchiha Sasuke for Yakushi Kabuto," she verbalized making the purple haired Anbu's eyes widen.

"So...you're going to accept the offer? It can be a trick," Yugao spoke while Kushina leaned forward, interlacing her fingers in front of her mouth.

"He has also offered us Danzo."

"D-Danzo?" a completely shocked look on her face while the godaime just sighed.

"Just call jiji for now," she ordered making Yugao nod as she shunshined out after putting her mask on.

Kushina leaned back into her chair as she turned it on its wheels to gaze outside- a conflicted look on her face.

'_This was completely unexpected. Earlier we did suspect that Danzo might have sided with Orochimaru willingly. But if that bastard is ready to give us Danzo, it means he kidnapped that old coot during the invasion. But...why would he kidnap Danzo, and then give him back to us? Is it because of the Sharingan? And why is he going so far for a mere pawn like Kabuto? Is Kabuto that important to him...or this some sort of trick?'_

Sighing to herself, she tapped the Uzushio seal on her neck.

"_Naruto, are you there?"_ she telepathically uttered, waiting for his reply.

"_Yeah...what's wrong?"_ he was panting a bit.

"_This is important. I want you to immediately come to my office along with Kakashi and Mikoto-chan."_

"_Is something wrong? You sound tense."_

"_Just come here right now,"_ she ordered with authority as he went silent for a few seconds.

"_Got it.'_

* * *

><p><strong>So the 'Sasuke Retrieval Arc'...nope, more like 'Sanzo (lol) Retrieval Arc' initiates now. :D<strong>

**Hope this chapter was long enough, and to your liking. Keep reading and review please. :)**

**N6023**


	51. A Saga of Epiphany Begins!

**HAH! FINALLY this chapter was able to come out! Only explanation for this late update I can give is that I had been out of my groove this past month. I couldn't concentrate on writing anything...ANYTHING I tell you. It was so frustrating for me, and with the start of college it only made it increasingly difficult for me. Then finally my best friend, 'Foolish Little Brother' on this site, came to my rescue. I wrote most of this chapter on google drive with him constantly monitoring my progress. **

**I must say that when you know someone's viewing your work as you write gives a real boost! And when I started writing again, with my muse back, I was able to finish this chapter in two days! YEAH GUYS, I began writing this chapter only two days ago! Flame me for that if you want to! -.-**

**Anyways, it was thanks to my buddy sitting with me (literally) and helping me finish this. Without him, I don't think I could've gotten back into my groove even now. :(**

**And lastly, I'm extremely sorry for making you guys wait for this chapter- IF you were even waiting for it that is. :D**

**Well, let's BEGIN!**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 51- A Saga of Epiphany Begins...<strong>

* * *

><p>Sighing to herself, she tapped the Uzushio seal on her neck.<p>

"_Naruto, are you there?"_ she telepathically uttered, waiting for his reply.

"_Yeah...what's wrong?"_ he was panting a bit.

"_This is important. I want you to immediately come to my office along with Kakashi and Mikoto-chan."_

"_Is something wrong? You sound tense."_

"_Just come here right now,"_ she ordered with authority as he went silent for a few seconds.

"_Got it.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Several Minutes Later: Hokage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>"This is definitely his handwriting..." Hiruzen sighed as he put the piece of paper down, a weary sigh escaping his lips as he sat in front of Kushina. Behind him stood Naruto and Mikoto, the duo having serious expressions on their faces. This was big, this was the opportunity they had been waiting for.<p>

"What do you think? This could be a trap too jiji," Kushina asked, a grave look on her face with Yugao standing beside her.

"What's your take on this Mikoto? Do you want to go?" Hiruzen asked, not taking his eyes off the paper as the Uchiha clenched her fists.

"You know my answer well...sandaime-sama," everyone present could clearly hear the spite in her voice as she addressed the village's former leader.

Kushina sighed as she intertwined her fingers in front of her mouth, she knew Mikoto's grudge against the village's elders as well as the third hokage. It was...understandable, despite the possible conditions, her clan was wiped out by one of their own upon Hiruzen's orders after all. And also, Orochimaru was offering Danzo as well- someone who has been the centre of everything that has happened so far.

"When has he asked us to meet him at Valley of the End?" Naruto asked.

"No specifics regarding the time whatsoever," the godaime answered while shaking her head.

"We should reach there as soon as possible then, I'm sure they must have already set a camp around that place, waiting for us. They know we would hurry anyways," Mikoto verbalized as the blonde glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. She was surprisingly calm in such a situation. But he knew, she must be extremely anxious to just get out there and finally see her younger son.

"I agree, there's no use just sitting here and pondering whether it could be a trap. We just have to be prepared for all kinds of possibilities," Sarutobi uttered making the red haired hokage nod as she turned to Mikoto.

"I'll be sending Naruto with you Mikoto-chan," she apparently ignored the warning glare Hiruzen was giving her before closing her eyes for a moment.

"Hyuga Hinata, Haruno Sakura, Tayuya and Mi-"

BHAM!

"You called Nii-chan!" Naruto, Mikoto and Hiruzen turned to see a panting Anko standing at the door, a stick of dango in her mouth with Kurenai and Hana standing behind her- embarrassed blush on their faces as they grumbled under their breaths.

"...Mitarashi Anko will accompany you two on this mission," finished the godaime hokage with a twitching eyebrow. Naruto smirked at Anko's antics as the trio entered the office while Yugao had tensed up.

"Are you sure it's wise to send her?" the Anbu kunoichi asked in a low tone.

"Her curse seal was removed by Naruto a month ago, I'm sure she'll be fine. If she was not needed in this mission, I wouldn't have unnecessarily added her Yugao-chan," Kushina replied curtly.

"Wait! Anko is tagging along them, I'm sure I can assist them too. I'm free anyways," Hana spoke eagerly making the hokage shake her head.

"No Hana-chan, I don't want to send out more than necessary numbers. It could be a trap to lure out our main forces, leaving the village vulnerable for attacks. I have to look both sides."

"But it could be a trap from Orochimaru too! What if we need every bit of strength to counter whatever they may have in store for us. My tracking skills along with my ninken can help the mission a great deal," the Inuzuka argued with a frown as Naruto and the other fire queens looked at her.

"Hyuga Hinata is being sent for that purpose. With her Toyotama Byakugan along with Uzume, she can cover long distances with her enhanced sight. Moreover, with her technique Shinto, she can share her enhanced vision with others simultaneously," Kushina voiced calmly while others had to agree with her.

"Are you implying she's a better tracker than me?" Hana questioned with a deep frown as she stared at Kushina while Naruto gazed at her in surprise.

"Considering the circumstances and this mission...yes."

"Kaa-san!" Naruto exclaimed as he turned his head to glare at her while Kushina's eyes were closed.

THAP!

The jinchuuriki turned back to see Hana no longer present there, the door now shut.

"I'll go and check on her," Kurenai uttered, mainly to Kushina as she turned on her heels to exit the office when the whiskered blonde turned to the hokage with an agitated look on his face.

"You didn't have to say it like that dammit!" Kushina watched as her son stormed off towards the door.

"Reach at the gate in an hour Naruto."

The blonde didn't say anything as he left the office while silence filled the office. Hiruzen looked at Kushina with pity as she took a deep breath. He knew being in her position was never easy; being a Hokage was never easy. You always had to look past your personal relations and obligations to make a decision- especially in these sort of circumstances.

He had faced such situations countless times during his reign, and it always tore at his heart to make such hard decisions.

"Kushina, don't worry...it'll work out," Mikoto spoke to her best friend with a small smile making the Uzumaki nod while Yugao put a hand on her shoulder in comfort.

* * *

><p><strong>With Hana<strong>

* * *

><p>The Inuzuka was currently jumping through the rooftops, a deep scowl on her usually relaxed face. She was pissed right now, her fists clenched as she sped away from the Hokage office, towards one of the training grounds- the kunoichi had to blow off some steam.<p>

"Hana-chan wait up!" the Inuzuka sighed in frustration as she recognized that voice instantly.

"I don't want to talk right now Kurenai! Just leave me alone!" she yelled over her shoulder as the crimson eyed jounin continued to follow her.

"Dammit slow down will you?! What's with you all of a sudden?!" Kurenai shouted back while Hana's feet flared with chakra as she blurred forward, giving no response. The genjutsu mistress narrowed her eyes, she was already moving at her fastest. The Inuzuka were known for their strong chakra after all.

"Kurenai-chan!" the jounin looked back to see Naruto catching up with her.

'_Great...looks like he too has surpassed me in speed,'_ Kurenai thought with a sigh as the blonde approached her.

"Where's Hana-chan?" he asked seriously.

"She just won't stop...says she wants to be alone right now. I can't catch up to her also," Kurenai said as she pointed in the direction where Hana went. A grin crept onto Naruto's face as he turned to the jounin beside him.

"Heehee...guess I'm getting faster than you huh Kurenai-chan?" he teased as she glared at him playfully. The blonde burst out in laughter as he leaned in to kiss her on the cheek.

"I was just joking, anyway, you can head back...I'll see what's wrong with her," she smiled back before pulling him by his jounin vest as both of them stopped on a roof.

"That won't do Naruto..." Kurenai uttered as she wrapped her arms around his neck while he stared at her quizzically.

"What won't do?" the blonde tilted his head in confusion when she leaned in to kiss him passionately. His eyes widened momentarily before he kissed her back, pulling her in by her waist. The duo pulled back upon hearing a loud gasp.

Kurenai turned her head for her eyes to widen in panic as she spotted a civilian teen standing in balcony, staring at them wide eyed. As stated earlier, Naruto's romantic life was hidden from the general public, especially his relation with the fire queens and Kushina. And if someone saw the former ice queen kissing him, all hell had to break loose in the village.

POOF!

"Huh?" Naruto looked beside him to see Kurenai having transformed into another Naruto. The civilian teen looked on as the transformed Kurenai, while grinning very Naruto-like, put an arm around the blonde's shoulder.

"Man, that sure felt real dattebayo! I bet Kurenai-sama's lips are soft just like that!" the transformed 'Naruto' exclaimed while the real Naruto looked on in confusion. The jinchuuriki looked on as the teen's eyes widened in horror before he dashed back into his house while yelling-

"Kaa-san! Tou-san! You won't believe what I just saw! Naruto-sama is actually a gay! That's why he never goes out with his fan girls! I just saw him kissing his own shadow clone!"

"NANI?!" Naruto shouted with an enraged look on his face as Kurenai poofed back into herself, holding the blonde back by his collar.

"Calm down Naruto, we know you're not a gay. It's not going to bring any harm, not that anyone would believe it," Kurenai spoke while giggling to herself in amusement as the blonde pouted at her.

"Well, you should go on. See you later," Kurenai articulated before kissing him on the cheek lovingly. She took off while the blonde just sighed to himself. He turned back towards the empty balcony, a few seconds going on in silence.

"UZUMAKI NARUTO IS NOT A GAY DATTEBAYO!"

* * *

><p><strong>With Hana: Inuzuka Clan Estates: Training Grounds<strong>

* * *

><p>The Inuzuka heiress stood in front of a training post, panting lightly as she took deep breaths to calm herself. Her eyes were closed, her features relaxed as she clenched and unclenched her fists. Her triplets ninken- the Haimaru brothers sat some distance away, observing her.<p>

Her nose slowly scrunched up, her eyebrows narrowing as her lips curled down in a deep scowl while her clenched fists trembled.

DHWAK!

Hana slammed her right fist into the dummy in frustration.

"Damn it!" she exhaled unsteadily when one of her ninken came close to her, barking lightly at her. The Inuzuka breathed in as she pulled her fist back.

"It's nothing...leave me alone for a while," her voice stern as Haimaru mewled, backing up when it felt a hand on its head.

"Aww c'mon, what's his fault?" Hana didn't turn around as Naruto continued to pet Haimaru while the ninken licked his whiskered cheek, showing his delight of seeing the blonde.

"Hehe, it's good to see you too buddy. Sorry I haven't been around lately," the jinchuuriki laughed as other two ninken surrounded him- licking him all over.

"Ahaha, hey that tickles!" Naruto exclaimed as the Haimaru brothers wagged their tails in joy.

"I don't want to talk right now Naruto," Hana spoke firmly, her back turned to him as he looked at her in confusion. He petted the ninken with a smile before getting up, his smile slowly fading to give way to a serious expression. Walking towards her slowly, the blonde slipped his arms around her waist-gently pulling her in as she went stiff.

Hana closed her eyes, a sigh escaping her lips when she felt him applying his special chakra to her- a feeling of sereneness flowing through her body. She soon relaxed in his arms while he placed soft kisses on her neck, her ear.

"You know how to always melt me don't you?" she muttered, her eyes closed. Naruto chuckled in response as he nibbled on her ear, making her moan lightly.

"You know Kaa-san didn't mean it Hana-chan. Why are you so frustrated?" the whiskered blonde asked her softly as she turned around in his arms- frowning at him lightly.

"Your really are clueless when it comes to women aren't you?" her frown turned into an exasperated smile as she shook her head.

"It's nothing," a tinge of sadness in her voice as she broke her gaze from him.

"Go...you have an important mission. You should be mentally prepared for anything, you're still a freshly promoted chunin after all," she teased him with a grin, pinching his nose lightly when he grabbed her wrist firmly. Hana looked at him in surprise as he stared at her with a sombre look on his face.

"Is it perhaps because I'm not being able to give much time to you? That we haven't been with each other much recently?" it was more of a question than a statement while Hana held a startled look in her eyes.

"I-It's not like that...I know you've been busy with training and other stuff. Moreover, Akatsuki is after you, I can only imagine the pressure you're dealing with. But I know you're strong and that you would never give up. I've been watching you since you were little...I know you can handle anything. So don't you go worrying about us, we're fine as it is. These problems might create a gap between us, but I'm sure we'll figure something out," Hana uttered with a light grin, her hands locked behind her back.

Naruto smiled at her as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"It's strange, I came here to calm you down. And now you're the one preaching me. You still haven't told me why you stormed out back then. There had to be something that made you so angry," he enquired making her sigh.

'_Him and his stubbornness...why can't he just leave it?'_

"I just..." her voice trailed as she averted her gaze.

"I really wanted to go on this mission, to fight alongside you. I mean...there's no guarantee that Akatsuki won't strike again this time. And with the mission here focusing on Orochimaru and Danzo, I don't want to just sit, knowing that I could be out there...helping you," the Inuzuka was rubbing her arm, an uncertain expression on her face as she looked anywhere but into his deep oceanic pools.

"It's...I...thank you Hana-chan. Really, that means so much to me. But you just said that you believe in me," he uttered as she lifted her eyes to meet his as he smirked at her, confidence radiating off his face.

"I'm not the same kid anymore who you always had to look out for. You don't have to worry for me like before. These past months, I've grown up considerably- mentally, physically, as well as...emotionally too. I may sometimes crack under the pressure, but you as well as everyone around me knows damn well that I won't give up. So...have some faith in me Hana-chan, that's all I ask for," Naruto lifted his hand, his palm sideways as he stared intensely at her.

The Inuzuka smiled as she slowly lifted her hand.

"You...really have grown up, haven't you Naruto?" the blonde gave his full blown foxy grin in return as she held his hand firmly.

'_Rather...if you refuse to grow up, life forces you to.'_

"It's my turn to protect you all."

Hana stared at him in wonder, goose bumps forming on her skin as she gazed into his bright eyes- full of warmth, self-belief and determination. Kushina had informed them that he was getting emotionally unstable, feeling stress these days due to all that he had endured recently. They had to take care of him, make sure he didn't fall and go into depression. All of them were on the lookout for him, to support him in any way possible. But he...he always managed to surprise her. Just when you thought that he was going to fall, he would adjust his footing and stand up again- again and again—every damn single time. It amazed her, no...it enthralled her, captivated her, enchanted her everytime.

'_You can't help but fall in love with him again and again,'_ an affectionate smile on her face as she nodded with him, speechless for a lack of better word.

"My my, so I happen to stumble upon the lovebirds!" the duo turned to see Tsume Inuzuka walking towards them, a feral grin on her face.

"Oba-san! So how's it going?!" Naruto grinned widely as he stepped around while a tic mark formed on Tsume's forehead.

"When will you stop calling me that brat! I'm still pretty young!" she growled as he laughed sheepishly while Hana giggled lightly.

"Ya well, I can't get it out of my head that you're Hana-chan's mother. Can you blame me here?" the blonde verbalized while rubbing the back of his head making the Inuzuka clan head sigh in defeat. A smirk quickly found its way on her face as she slung an arm over his shoulder.

"So pretty boy, when are you going to bless me with some cute and adorable grand pups. I won't mind them calling me Obaa-chan."

"Kaa-san!" Hana's face erupted into a deep crimson blush as she exclaimed loudly while Naruto squinted his eyes in confusion.

"Pups?" his mind quickly wrapped around the ways of Inuzuka clan as he realized what Tsume was talking about.

"THE HELL?!" the blonde wiggled out of her arm, his face red in embarrassment as he pointed an accusing finger at her.

"I'M STILL TOO YOUNG FOR THAT ERO-OBA!" he quickly turned towards Hana to notice her looking at the ground, the deep blush not planning on going away anytime soon.

"D-Don't say stuff without thinking dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed as he turned back to Tsume, a freaked out looked on his face while Tsume crossed her arms over her chest.

"Young? Have you looked yourself in the mirror, who in his right mind would believe that you're just a thirteen year old kid. You look like you're sixteen or something," she spoke with a nonchalant look on her face making him sigh in defeat.

"Whatever, this topic is way too weird for me! I mean, I haven't even checked out all the ramen flavours in the world! Becoming a father is the last thing on my mind right now! I'm sure Hana-chan feels the same way too, ne Hana-chan?" he turned to the blushing Inuzuka as she snapped her head up.

"O-Of course! We're still too young for that!" an embarrassed countenance on her face while Tsume smirked at her daughter. She sighed in mocked sadness while shaking her head.

"Pups these days, you'd thought they would be more energetic than that. Anyways, don't tell you two haven't even had sex yet?" she sported a bored expression while Hana's blush went a deeper shade of red, if that was even possible.

"H-How can you talk about stuff like that so easily?! There's something seriously wrong with you oba-san!" Naruto exclaimed, trying to fight back the blush on his face as Tsume snorted in amusement.

"Heh, just like your mother. Kushina would always turn into a ripe tomato whenever inquired about such stuff. Yesterday when I asked her about her sex life with you, you should have looked at her face. Her face erupted into a volcanic blush, she began to sputter like a teen who had just lost her virginity," Tsume ranted, her hands on her hips while Naruto didn't know how to react, too embarrassed to say anything whereas Hana too was silent- inwardly cursing her motor-mouth mother.

"But hey, judging by the glow on her face- you must be banging her up real good huh?" Tsume grinned devilishly. By now Hana just wanted to dig herself deep under the ground and never come out.

"You don't have to say it like that dammit!" Naruto yelled comically as he shook his fists, making the Inuzuka matriarch laugh out loud in amusement.

"Oh I should tell you, the first time I asked Kushina about sex. She was so innocent back then," Tsume mimicked Kushina's innocent face as she put her hands in front of her chest like an eager child.

"Sex? Does it taste better than salt ramen?" her voice high pitched to match the younger Kushina while Naruto couldn't help but burst out in laughter, finding it oddly hilarious.

"R-Really? She was that ignorant?" the jinchuuriki asked with thinly veiled surprise as Tsume just nodded with a smirk, her eyes closed.

"And you should have seen the look on her face when I gave her the talk, the bird and the bees. She was so embarrassed I thought she'd never be able to look at any male without blushing"

"_Damn, I forgot to tell you about that part,"_ Ayumi spoke with a pout while Naruto laughed loudly. It was way too funny imagining Kushina's reaction.

Hana looked at Naruto and Tsume conversing without any care in the world as she smiled warmly at them.

'_They get along so well...I just hope Kiba won't mind once he gets to know about Naruto and me.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha's North Gate: Roughly One Hour Later<strong>

* * *

><p>"So, you think this mission is going to get ugly?" Sakura asked, currently standing with Hinata and Tayuya with a nervous look on her face. Kushina, Mikoto and Hiruzen stood a bit away from them, talking amongst themselves about something serious.<p>

"It can Sakura-chan. We have to be prepared for almost anything. You should know best that any mission that involves Naruto-kun won't be normal," Hinata uttered seriously while Tayuya was rolling her flute between her fingers, a bored look on her face.

"Even if it does turn out to be a fucking bitch, it doesn't matter to me. If you had endured half the things Kin-chan and I had to back in sound, you won't be such a nervous wreck," she muttered.

"Hey! Give me a break here at least. This is my first S-rank mission after all, and I'm the only genin in this squad remember? Oh yes, that does a great deal to lift my morale," the pink haired kunoichi rolled her eyes, sighing in defeat when Hinata put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry Sakura-chan, we are here to support you too. Besides, the fact that you were the only genin chosen in this squad means that hokage-sama has trust in you. You have improved tremendously this past month, I'm sure you'll be okay. I too was nervous in our last mission with Jiraiya-sama, but if you are focused enough, it'll work out. You just have to believe in yourself," a soft look in her pale eyes as Tayuya glanced at the Hyuga heiress.

"That blondie has such a heavy effect on you that sometimes it scares me. I won't be surprised if one day I find your hair dyed blonde, those cat marks on your cheek and you eating ramen all day," her expression laid-back while Hinata's cheeks erupted into a deep blush as she began to poke her index fingers.

"I-It's not like that Tayuya-chan," her voice barely above a whisper while Sakura stared at her in amusement.

'_There's that old Hinata again, habits sure don't leave you easily,'_ the pink haired kunoichi thought when she froze upon feeling something soft and wet on her cheek.

"Do I taste...fear?" she heard a cold voice just behind her.

"KYAA!" Hinata, Tayuya, Kushina, Mikoto and Hiruzen all turned around upon hearing Sakura scream in fright.

Anko stood grinning as Sakura's freaked out expression soon turned into that of anger.

"Y-You're that crazy proctor from the chunin exams! Don't scare me like that shannaro!" she yelled while Kushina, Mikoto and Hiruzen just chuckled at Anko's antics, she and her pranks...

"When will you grow up Anko-chan?" Yugao stood by her long time friend as she shook her head in exasperation. Hinata smiled at the two fire queens as she greeted the duo politely.

"Why if it isn't my favourite Hyuga! How's it going sunshine!" Anko grinned as she rested her hand on Hinata's head.

"Everything's fine Anko-san. It's been a while huh?" the Hyuga smiled while Yugao greeted her too. The fire queens, which also included her sensei, were all close to Naruto. Sometimes it felt to her as if they were all one big family- and that one person and interconnected all of them.

POOF!

"Phew, right on time."

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"Kurenai-sensei!" Hinata spoke with an enthusiastic smile as the just arrived jounin smiled back.

"Well, I couldn't let my student go on her first S-rank mission without seeing her off right?" she uttered while elbowing Kakashi in the gut making the silver haired jounin rub the back of his head as he chuckled to himself- a jovial Sakura in front of him.

"I can't believe you came too," she verbalized with a bright smile.

"Well yes, just as Kurenai said, it is your first S-rank mission after all," he replied after resting a supporting hand on her shoulder. The jounin couldn't help but look at her in pride. She had come a long way since the chunin exams under his tutelage, it was only a matter of time before she would be acknowledged by her peers too.

"Tayuya..." Kakashi called as the ex-Oto kunoichi turned to him. Frowning, she walked towards him and Sakura. She and Kin were a part of team seven now after all.

"What's up scarecrow?" she asked making the jounin sweatdrop, still no respect for her sensei.

"Anyways, I want yo-"

"AAAAAHHHHH! STOP THROWING THOSE NEEDLES YOU OLD PERVERT!" everyone turned to see a familiar blonde approaching them, running at breakneck speeds as he dodged several white needles along the way.

"GET BACK HERE YOU BRAT! YOU ALWAYS RUIN MY RESEARCHES!"

"Naruto?" Kushina muttered in confusion as Naruto ran to cover himself behind her.

"Kaa-san! Ero-sennin has gone crazy! He's hitting me with a barrage of needles from his hair!" the blonde prankmaster exclaimed as the glowering sanin came into everyone's view. He was completely wet, his clothes torn in several places, a black eye while there was a large lump on his forehead- a frown on his face.

"There you are you squirt!" his hair grew around him as they hardened into needles making Naruto, Hinata and Sakura freak out.

"WAAH! His hair just turned into needles!"

"Kaa-san stop him!" the blonde held Kushina's shoulders tightly as he swiftly dodged a needle.

"Okay OKAY! What's going on here?!" Kushina asked while Mikoto tried to stifle her giggle at seeing Jiraiya's condition.

"I'll tell you what's going on here! This brat yet again ruined my research!"

"That's what you get for peeping you old pervert!" Naruto exclaimed from behind Kushina as a tic mark grew on Jiraiya's forehead.

"I'm not a pervert brat! I'M A SUPER PERVERT!" the white haired sannin yelled with an indignant look on his face as he pointed a thumb at his chest. Kushina just sighed while Hiruzen shook his head, disappointed at his student's antics.

"Yeah yeah we know you're a super pervert. But let's get serious here. Naruto, have you packed for the mission?" Kushina looked over her shoulder as the blonde nodded, tapping the storage scroll on his utility belt.

"Alright everyone! Gather up!" the godaime ordered as the group walked towards her. Kurenai and Kakashi stood behind Hinata and Sakura, their hands on their students' shoulders.

Kushina stared at Hinata and Sakura for a few seconds before speaking.

"I know you two must be nervous, seeing as this is your first S-rank mission. But don't let it deter you. One of the village's best jounin will be accompanying you, and I'm sure Naruto won't let anything happen to you," the red head smiled as the jinchuuriki stepped forward, nodding with a confident smirk on his face.

"Sorry for interrupting hokage-sama, but Naruto-kun doesn't need to protect us," Hinata spoke with a serious expression making everyone look at her when Sakura stepped forward too.

"Yes, we can carry our own weight. We are kunoichi of Konohagakure!" she exclaimed making Kushina nod back seriously while Kurenai and Kakashi smiled at their students.

"_Well would you look at that, that's quite the confidence these girls got,"_ Ayumi uttered in surprise while Naruto had a lazy smile on his face.

"_They're trying to be strong in front of us. They don't want anyone worrying for their safety on this mission. All of us...have matured Ayumi-chan. Heh, it's kind of ironic."_

Kushina turned as she stared at a tree in the forests beside the road they were standing on.

"You can come out now," she verbalized loudly as a figure started to form out of the tree's large trunk. Naruto, Sakura and Hinata's eyes widened when the figure came out, wearing the traditional jounin wear of Konoha.

"This is Yamato. He'll be accompanying you on this mission," Naruto looked at the jounin with scepticism.

"Mikoto will be the squad's leader. You have to reach the Valley of the End as soon as possible. Rest of the mission details will be explained by her on the way. Any questions?" the hokage scanned Hinata, Tayuya and Sakura mainly as everyone stayed quiet.

The whiskered blonde however gazed at the large scroll Mikoto had strapped to her back.

'_That must contain a sealed Kabuto. Kaa-san must have gone to extreme measures to properly seal that guy,'_ he thought before turning to Jiraiya.

"Ero-sennin, can I talk to you for a moment?" he questioned making the toad sage nod as the blonde started walking away from the group, followed by the sanin.

"What could be on his mind?" Mikoto wondered out loud while Kushina looked at the duo several meters away from them.

"What is it gaki?" Jiraiya asked as Naruto stared at him seriously.

"I want the Shiki Fujin's key," he articulated making the sanin's eyes widen.

"Are you serious?" he asked in shock making the blonde nod.

"Dead serious ero-sennin."

Jiraiya quickly schooled his expression as he shook his head.

"No, I can't. It's too dangerous. We can't risk setting kyuubi free, Orochimaru easily manipulated you the last time anyway," he spoke sternly making the jinchuuriki sigh as he closed his eyes.

A moment later he opened his eyes making Jiraiya step back in surprise as he found himself staring into dark crimson orbs with black slits.

"**Don't worry, we aren't planning on doing anything reckless. If the situation arises, we'll only need to weaken the seal a bit. I assure you. Naruto won't take any risk**," Ayumi spoke outwardly through Naruto as Jiraiya stared into those crimson eyes for a few seconds. A defeated sigh escaped his lips as he grumbled under his breath.

"Fine, but know that we're taking a huge risk with this. You have to be extremely careful with the seal. You know that once your chakra starts seeping out, its negative will may take over you as well as Naruto. Only the seal filters your chakra's negative will from you...that's the reason you can converse normally with him. You know that once the chakra seeps out, you would revert back to normal. This poses a great threat to Naruto too," his face held a grave countenance, his eyes boring into crimson orbs as Ayumi averted her gaze.

"**I know. He doesn't know the complete details, but I plan on telling him soon. Right now, we need to concentrate on this mission Jiraiya. We need the Eight Trigrams seal's key**," she said making him nod as he bit his thumb.

Going through a few hand seals, he slammed his right hand on the ground.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!**"

PUFF!

Kushina and others looked on in confusion as they saw Jiraiya summon something. The smoke soon vanished, revealing a black and orange toad with dark markings around his eyes, mouth and a circular mark just below his mouth along with what looked to be an obi around his midsection.

"I never imagined being summoned so soon," the toad spoke making Kushina's eyes widen in shock upon seeing him.

'_A scroll toad...?'_

"It's time Gerotora, you know what to do," Jiraiya muttered making the toad's eyes widen as he glanced at Naruto.

"Are you sure Jiraiya? He's still too young to be entrusted with the key," Gerotora spoke while Naruto reverted back to himself.

"No, he's ready. I trust him," the sanin uttered making the toad nod hesitantly.

"Well, if you say so. Open wide gaki," Gerotora said making Naruto look at it in confusion.

"Open your mouth Naruto," the blonde looked at Jiraiya before nodding. Just when he was about open his mouth...

"Jiraiya!" the duo turned as Kushina stomped towards them, a demanding expression on her face as she looked at Gerotora.

"Are you out of your mind?! What did you summon Gerotora! What's going on here Naruto?!" the godaime enquired with a frown making the blonde sigh.

"I need the key to tou-san's seal. And don't you dare say no Kaa-san, Ayumi-chan and I both agreed on this. I know what I'm doing," he warned back with an equally serious expression, letting her know that there was no room for argument.

"Ayumi agreed with you? What's going on in your mind? She does know the risks right?" Kushina articulated when Jiraiya put a hand on her shoulder.

"I just talked to her. I trust her...they know what they're doing Kushina. The brat has grown up, he's no longer a kid. Trust him with this," Jiraiya smirked as he glanced at his godson who smiled back in gratitude.

"Okay, here I go...aaaa," Naruto opened his mouth while others standing away from them looked on in confusion.

"What's going on?" Anko asked while Kurenai and Yugao shrugged.

"Beats me."

"Open wider...wider...wider," Gerotora ushered as Naruto kept stretching his mouth, his eyes closed in strain while Kushina looked on in worry.

"Wider...a little bit more wider...a little mooore."

"THE FUCK'S WRONG WITH YOU?! MY MOUTH'S NOT MADE OF RUBBER YOU DAMN FROG!" Naruto snapped comically.

"NANI?! I'M A TOAD YOU BRAT! NOT FROG! LEARN THE DIFFERENCE BLONDIE!" Gerotora yelled while Jiraiya sighed in exasperation.

"Stop fighting you two and just get on with it. We're running out of time," the sannin warned as the blonde stepped back, grumbling under his breath before opening his mouth.

"It slips out of my mind how he managed to pick a fight even with a damn frog," Tayuya shook her head at Naruto.

"IT'S TOAD YOU IDIOT!" Gerotora yelled at her making her look at the toad in surprise as she snorted in reply- before she realized what he had said.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING IDIOT YOU MOTHERFUCKER?!" the ex-Oto kunoichi snapped back, sporting shark-like teeth while others sweat-dropped at her.

'_Talk about hypocrisy, she managed to pick up a fight with the toad too,'_ they thought simultaneously.

"Enough Gerotora, get in," Jiraiya worded making the toad grumble about 'idiot human youngsters' as he turned to Naruto.

"Here I come!" he exclaimed before jumping towards Naruto, right into its mouth.

Kushina as well as everyone in the group a bit away from them gawked at the scene.

"Mff...MFFFHH!" Naruto's muffled cries broke the silence as he fell to his knees, Gerotora struggling to go down his throat.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Kushina, along with Anko, Tayuya and Sakura screamed out in horror as they witnessed the scene with freaked out expressions on their faces. Jiraiya grinned at the situation as he walked towards Naruto. His right foot came out of his shinobi sandal as he reared his leg behind him, shaking it a bit for effect.

BHAM!

"JIRAIYA!" Kushina yelled at him, too worried for Naruto as Gerotora's final painful moan 'Ow my butt!' was heard- the toad finally being pushed down the blonde's throat- courtesy of a well placed kick by Jiraiya.

Naruto put his hands on the ground as he panted to catch his breath while Tayuya smirked to herself.

'_That's what you get for fucking with me ya shitty frog...a kick to your butt!'_ she nodded to herself in approval of the sanin's prank while the group scuttled to where Naruto was panting.

"Naruto-kun are you alright?"

"Hey you okay?!"

"Naruto can you breathe?!"

"Y-Yeah..." the blonde answered as he lifted his head to glare at a grinning Jiraiya.

"You could've warned me ero-sennin!" he exclaimed making the toad sage snort.

"Where's the fun in that gaki? That should remind you never to ruin my research time," he spoke nonchalantly while Kushina hurried to the jinchuuriki's side- her maternal instincts surfacing.

"Naru-kun are you okay?!" the red head hugged him tightly, surprising him somewhat.

"_See, I told you. Underneath all that tough hokage exterior, she's still your mom after all. She loves you very much Naruto. Look at her fussing over you like that..."_ the bijuu chuckled at the worried-sick expression on Kushina's face as the Uzumaki red head kissed his forehead.

Naruto blushed in embarrassment upon finding others smiling in amusement at the scene in front of them.

"Mah Kaa-san I'm fine. It was just a toad after all, nothing else," he spoke, pushing her away gently. Nevertheless, he couldn't ignore the warm feeling in his heart at seeing Kushina fuss over him so much.

"Phew, you scared us for a moment back there," Anko wiped her forehead while Kakashi continued to stare at Naruto.

"Naruto, was that what I think it was?" he questioned seriously making the blonde nod in agreement. The copy ninja turned to Jiraiya who just nodded at him.

"Well, I hope you know what you're doing. I have faith in you," Kakashi smiled at the jinchuuriki making him smile back.

"Alright, now that we're done, let's get on with this mission!" Naruto stood up with a jerk while Kushina sighed in relief.

"Well, see you later hokage-sama!" the blonde grinned before placing a kiss on her cheek, making her blink.

"Yosh! Let's GO!" the ever energetic jinchuuriki dashed forward, through the north gate while leaving behind a dust trail.

Mikoto giggled at his antics as she began walking towards the gate.

"Well come on then, let's go. See you later hokage-sama," the Uchiha smirked at Kushina as she gave a mock salute over her shoulder- Anko, Yamato, Hinata, Sakura and Tayuya following her.

"What's wrong now?" Jiraiya yelled as everyone turned to see Naruto having stopped abruptly in his path, his back facing them.

"What's wrong Naru-kun?" Kushina asked loudly, worry seeping back into her voice as he turned around with a sheepish look on his face.

"Hehe...where did you tell Valley of the End was?"

THUD!

Everyone fell anime style abruptly when Sakura got back up quickly.

"ARE YOU A GENIUS OR AN IDIOT HERE NARUTO?! MAKE IT CLEAR DAMMIT!" she yelled at the top of her lungs making the blonde rub the back of his head in embarrassment, laughing all the while.

* * *

><p><strong>Unknown Forests: Roughly 12 Miles Away From Konoha<strong>

* * *

><p>WHOOSH!<p>

SWISH!

Leaves were rustled as the group sped through the forests, leaping from one branch to another. Everyone had serious expressions on their faces as they blurred through the dense foliage, towards their destination in silence.

Hinata had her Byakugan activated, staying at the last of the group followed by Anko and Sakura. Mikoto was in the middle, her Sharingan activated with Tayuya following her. Naruto and Yamato were in the front as they remained on look out for any frontal attack.

His eyes widened upon noticing several whizzing incoming shuriken, paper bombs tagged to them. The group didn't have time to react as the projectiles reached them in a fraction of a second.

**BOOM!**

A huge explosion took place, rocking the area as an invisible shockwave darted outwards- shaking several trees violently. The blast died down quickly as the smoke revealed a large crater in the middle, all the foliage having been burnt in a manner of seconds with a heavily injured Hinata and Anko lying in the middle.

A few seconds went by in silence when several blurry figures landed near the crater.

"Hn...well that easy," a rather fat figure spoke, eating a piece of meat as he leaned against the trunk of a tree.

"Where is the scroll they were carrying?" another figure uttered as he stared at Hinata and Anko's unconscious form.

"I don't see it anywhere. Jiroubou, don't tell me you destroyed it in that blast?! I told you not to overdo it!" the third figure exclaimed as he landed on in crater, scanning his surroundings.

"Calm down Sakon, they're not idiots. Those leaf shinobi won't carry the scroll out in the open like that. The fact that only these two are here means the rest of them were clones."

"Tchh...don't act like you're so clever. We can't be too careful," Sakon worded with a frown as he started walking towards Hinata and Anko.

POOF!

The trio's eyes widened when the two unconscious kunoichi vanished into smoke. They lifted their heads to notice several large figures flying over them, towards the Valley of the End.

"Shit! Those bastards tricked us!" Kidomaru exclaimed as he jumped to land in the crater followed by Jiroubou.

"Let's go!" Sakon ordered when they noticed a figure descending towards the center of the crater.

Thup!

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback<strong>

* * *

><p>BOOM!<p>

A group of dragons slowed down when an explosion took place a small distance away from them- down in the forests.

"Wait! Stop you guys! My clones were dispelled!" Naruto yelled, currently riding on Kiyohime with the rest of group riding on their separate dragons.

"What happened Naruto-sama?" Kiyohime asked while others looked at him for an explanation.

"It was an ambush...wait for a bit. Looks like two of my clones survived," he lifted his hand, telling the group to be quiet; his Uzushio curse seal was glowing red as they gazed at him with serious expressions- the dragons flapping their wings to stay airborne.

"It's those three," the blonde turned to Tayuya making her eyes widen.

"The ones you used to work with before," Naruto uttered with a grim look on his face as she narrowed her eyes.

"Jiroubou, Kidoumaru and Sakon...they're fucking dangerous, especially that cocksucker Sakon. He was the leader of our group, the strongest of us," Tayuya replied, a hint of anger in her voice while the whiskered blonde turned to Mikoto- who was riding atop of Mizuchi- the commander of Imperial Guards of Watatsumi. (Check my profile if you forgot.)

"You should go forward. I'll take care of these three. I might be able to get them to spill something," it actually surprised the Uchiha to see him this confident.

"Are you fucking crazy?! I just told you how dangerous those jackasses are! Don't get cocky and try to take them on alone!" Tayuya yelled while Naruto just ignored her as he kept gazing at Mikoto, silently asking her for permission while Sakura and Hinata stayed quiet, along with Anko and Yamato.

"The Valley of the End is not much far now. Anko-chan has the Uzushio curse seal, we'll have the telepathic link activated if any emergency arises," the jinchuuriki voiced as the Uchiha matriarch nodded.

"Fine, we'll be waiting for you. Get finished as soon as you can," she ordered, greatly surprising Anko and Yamato.

Naruto nodded seriously while Tayuya sighed in frustration, muttering 'fucking idiot' under her breath.

Mikoto turned back to face the direction of their destination.

"You're free to assist him Tayuya-san. You have the Uzushio curse seal too after all," she spoke before patting her dragon.

"Let's go Mizuchi-san," the wind dragon nodded before taking off along with other dragons.

"Do your best Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed making him nod as he glanced into Sakura and Anko's eyes- nodding at them.

"You know what to do Kiyohime-chan," Naruto crouched on his toes, a dead serious expression on his face.

"Hai Naruto-sama!"

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback Ends!<strong>

* * *

><p>"Are you sure it was the correct decision to send Naruto-san off like that," Yamato enquired as the group sped to their destination.<p>

Mikoto kept staring forward, tresses of her hair ruffling with the wind.

"_Kaa-san said that you won't be able to handle this, that you would break down! I fought with her! I said no! NO! That Mikoto-chan is not weak! That she is a strong kunoichi, a strong woman! That she can handle it!"_

"Don't worry Yamato-san. He's strong. We need to place our trust in him. He knows what he's doing," she vocalized with a solemn countenance while Anko couldn't help but smile at her answer.

'_You can't help but have faith in him. That's my whisker-kun for you,'_ the fire queen thought fondly.

Meanwhile back in the forests, Naruto stood up slowly, a smirk on his face as he glanced at Jiroubou and Kidoumaru, before staring straight into Sakon's narrowed eyes.

"Sorry guys, but the Valley of the End is a far more peaceful place without you there," the blonde uttered.

"You heard him motherfuckers," Tayuya landed beside him with a predatory grin on her face.

"You bitch!" Jiroubou exclaimed in anger as he threw away his piece of meat while she smirked at him.

"Feeling's mutual fatso," she responded calmly while Sakon frowned deeply.

"I see...the man I wanted to fight, you'll regret the moment you made this decision," the leader of ex-Sound Four articulated, a smirk curling his lips as he entered the first stage of curse mark- it's black marks stretching over his face- the same happening with Jiroubou and Kidoumaru.

CRRK!

Lightning suddenly materialized around Naruto's hands as he took the jyuuken stance with Tayuya taking out her demonic flute.

Jiroubou, Kidoumaru and Sakon's eyes widened when, within a blink of an eye, they found themselves staring into the legendary purple orbs.

Naruto's eyes blazed with the Rinnegan as he flashed them a fierce predatory smirk.

"Uzumaki Naruto, at your ass kicking service!"

* * *

><p><strong>Had to end this here. Hope this makes you eagerly waiting for the next chapter- cause this arc's going to be anything but boring. It's going to be full of intense fighting scenes, plot twists and drama. Hope you're ready for the wild ride! XD<strong>

**I REALLY hope you liked this chapter- because only I and my buddy knows how much it took for me to finally get back to writing. It was really tough for me this time- I had even considered quiting altogether once. O.o**

**Forgive me if this was not upto the level you were expecting, but as long as I know that people are reading and enjoying this story, I won't quit! You have no idea what your helpful reviews can do to an author, especially a struggling author like me. :)**

**Also, thanks for your continued support until now. It's the only thing that has kept me going in times of conflict lol. Well, see you next time! :D**

**N6023**


	52. Purpose

'**cough' 'cough'...**

**So I don't know how to say this...lol...but yeah, 'welcome back!' to me. Okay okay! I'm sorry! I ditched out, ran out, slipped out...whatever, but it had a reason! So yeah, first of all, I'm really sorry for just leaving you guys hanging without any prior notice.**

**Well about six months ago (wait, its six months right? Lemme check!)**

**...**

**...**

**HOLY F****KING HELL! It's been about 8 months...atleast since I updated this fic. **

**Anyway, my poor sense of humour aside, eight months ago I'd come to a VERY well thought out decision that I want to become a manga artist (yeah, laugh at me all you want! You won't be laughing when you see it!). And so I started working on my own ideas, practicing my drawing daily and just about anything I could put my hands on related to comics and manga. I've been busy since then. **

**Then in May, Shonen Jump announced an international contest for all mangaka wannabe's (in three languages- English, Chinese and... Japanese of course! Duh!) I'd already started my manga before and just finished with it now- completing with the first chapter (45 pages- that's the contest limit for number of pages) that I'm going to be submitting. So let's see how it goes! **

**SO, I was really, really...UBER busy most of time. Hell I didn't get to sleep some of the nights because of the workload due to me attending college at the same time. **

**I just didn't know what to say to you guys cuz honestly I didn't know myself, whether I had really quit writing or not... but I knew that whenever I would get time, I'll get right back to it. So here I am, cuz I'm free for now. **

**And SUPER, ULTRA THANKS to those who continued to motivate me, review and PM me (even when I couldn't reply T_T). I think you're asking me to update, and you telling how much you loved my work is probably the 90% reason that I'm writing this. Reviews, any positive comment, a small PM, ANY kind of motivation...really, do wonders for authors like us, now I understand that completely!**

**So for now it's back to writing, and practicing my artwork again (gotta keep getting better and better).**

**Sorry for that long A/N, but those who were wondering where I'd run off to- I think they deserved the explanation. And sorry for not replying to your PMs, same reason as before, I just didn't have time. I hope you understand, atleast some of you should? **

**Most guys may not remember this story since it's been a while...for the small percentage who do, this is for you. :D**

**So without any further whining on my part, let's continue from where I last left.**

**Chapter 52- Purpose**

"I see...the man I wanted to fight, you'll regret the moment you made this decision," the leader of ex-Sound Four articulated, a smirk curling his lips as he entered the first stage of curse mark- its black marks stretching over his face- the same happening with Jiroubou and Kidoumaru.

CRRK!

Lightning suddenly materialized around Naruto's hands as he took the jyuuken stance with Tayuya taking out her demonic flute.

Jiroubou, Kidoumaru and Sakon's eyes widened when, within a blink of an eye, they found themselves staring into the legendary purple orbs.

Naruto's eyes blazed with the Rinnegan as he flashed them a fierce predatory smirk.

"Uzumaki Naruto, at your ass kicking service!" the blonde exclaimed while the sound trio narrowed their eyes.

"Tch...what an overconfident brat," Sakon uttered, a frown on his face.

"Indeed," Yukon's deeper voice came from behind his head. Kidoumaru was sporting a cocky smile as he crouched a bit in preparation.

"A medium level difficulty, this game is an easy one. This level is as far as you're going to go blondie."

"Finally I'm going to get back at you for calling me fatso all those times. Suits you though, trash like you should remain with tra-"

WHAM!

Jiroubou received a blurred uppercut as he whirled back at whizzing speeds to crash into several tree trunks- splinters of wood flying out due to the impact.

'_Whoa...' _both Kidoumaru and Sakon had surprise written all over their faces, now watching Naruto stand up where Jiroubou was previously standing.

"You guys talk too much, I don't have time for you bullshit," the whiskered blonde's cold orbs pierced through their souls, his fists crackling with lightning while the remaining duo was pulled out of their momentary shocks.

'_I know shithead's strong...but damn,'_ even Tayuya couldn't help but be impressed by the brute strength of the jinchuriki.

"_Tayuya, do your illusion thing quickly,"_ she was pulled from her thoughts upon telepathically hearing Naruto's serious voice through the Uzushio curse seal.

"_I'll need a bit of time to prepare for my more effective attacks. They'll just break out of normal illusions within a matter of seconds,"_ she informed.

"Kidoumaru!" Sakon exclaimed as he dashed towards Naruto while the dark skinned shinobi spitted several strings of spider web through his mouth.

"_Just do it! I only need a sec!"_ Naruto spoke telepathically-pushing chakra under his feet as he jumped high into the air, dodging the web strings in the process.

"**Tarenkyaku **(Multiple Connected Feet)" Sakon muttered as Ukon's legs sprouted with his- making it four legs before he jumped towards Naruto.

"Where the fuck you think you're going birdbrain?" Tayuya uttered as she pressed the flute to her lips.

"Sakon, be ready for her genjutsu," Ukon warned as melodic sounds began to fill the area, pulling him, Kidoumaru and Jiroubou- who had just recovered, into her genjutsu.

"A few seconds is all I need," Naruto worded, still in midair as he pointed his hands in the general direction of an ascending Sakon, Kidoumaru and Jiroubou.

"**Banshou Tenin**" due to the pulling force, the genjutsu on them immediately dispelled as they flew towards him.

"Fuck!" Kidoumaru exclaimed, the trio being caught unprepared as they neared a descending Naruto.

Tayuya looked on in confusion as to what he was planning. Just when they were about to collide with the blonde, her eyes widened as the jinchuriki's body began to glow.

BHOOM!

A loud explosion rocked the area, creating smoke in midair while the redhead shielded her eyes from the sudden glare.

'_That was an exploding shadow clone huh?' _she realized, looking around to find the real one.

"_That's not enough to take them out right?"_ came Naruto's voice through the telepathic link.

"_Of course...you can't take those fuckers out that easily. Where the fuck are you hiding by the way?,"_ she asked as three blurred figures landed in front of her, smoke arising from their forms.

"_That's what I wanted. Just stay there, I'm releasing my weights,"_ the ex-Oto kunoichi heard as the smoke completely subsided to show burnt figures of Sakon, Kidoumaru and Jiroubou- the trio currently in the second stage of their curse seal.

"**I guess you didn't tell him how strong we are huh bitch**?" Kidoumaru grinned, their injuries healing at a fast rate- their appearances now demonic.

"**Chidori!**"

SQUELCH!

Sakon and Jiroubou looked with stunned expressions- a bloody hand sticking out in front of Kidoumaru's chest, right where his heart was.

His eyes widened, the four-arm shinobi coughed up a gobble of blood- his eyes rolling up into the back of his head.

KRCHH!

A sickening sound was heard as Naruto retracted his blood coated hand encased in lightning, his feet too covered in lightning. Tayuya watched in intimidated fascination as Kidoumaru's limp body fell- his form lifeless before it hit the dirt while a shadow clone poofed into existence beside the jinchuriki.

"**Bastard!"** Sakon growled while the blonde met his gaze with a cold expression before pointing his bloody palm at him and an astonished Jiroubou.

"Fifteen...Sixteen...Seventeen..." Sakon narrowed his eyes- his demonic eyes boring into the Rinnegan while two white glowing spheres of swirling chakra began to form in the clone's hands.

Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, his palm still facing them as he whispered to himself.

"Eighteen...**Banshou Tenin**."

'_Shit! That technique again!' _Ukon thought as their bodies were pulled at blurred speeds towards Naruto. They didn't even have time to react as the shadow clone dashed towards them at lightning speeds- both his hands reared back.

"**Rasenrengan! **(Dual Spiralling Spheres)"

The two chakra spheres were rammed into their stomachs.

"**AAAAGHHH**!" Both Sakon and Jiroubou yelled in immense pain as the rasengan grinded into their flesh- the duo still in air due to the pulling force of the Banshou Tenin as they were completely crushed against the two glowing spheres.

WHISH!

The real Naruto released the gravity technique as they were sent flying back, spiralling in midair due to the destructive force of Rasengan.

KHRDSHH!

Skidding rather rougly on the ground, their forms came to a halt as they writhed in agony, clutching their destroyed stomachs.

The jinchuriki dispelled the shadow clone as he started walking towards the duo, their curse marks receding while a pool of blood began to form beneath them.

"D-Damn you...j-just because of t-that...blasted pulling t-tech..."Sakon closed his eyes pain as he tried to glare at Naruto. The blonde stopped just in front of them as he gazed at their forms coldly- faintly seeing Jiroubou's intestines having been ripped out due to the brutality of the attack.

"I'll save you guys if you tell me what is Orochimaru upto?" he uttered as a faint smirk appeared on Sakon's face.

"I...I th-think you're forgetting something," he muttered when the jinchuriki ducked- a kunai passing just over his head. Reacting at speeds that surprised Sakon, he turned his ankle while taking out a kunai from his pouch before piercing Ukon's skull from the side in a flash.

Drops of blood fell down the blonde's wrist as he pulled his hand back while Ukon fell dead on the ground- the kunai still stuck into his head as a pile of blood formed beneath his body.

"No...I don't think I'm forgetting anything. I can see everything, every move you've been making," Naruto spoke.

POOF!

Tayuya looked around herself as the area around them was covered them in smoke- signifying lots of shadow clones being dispelled. Her eyes soon widened in realization.

'_Of course...his vision is linked. He had all those shadow clones surround this area- seeing what they were seeing all along. It's like he had the whole area under camera surveillance.'_

"H-How...?" Sakon weakly muttered as his chin slumped into the dirt while Jiroubou already looked to be dead.

"That's for me to know...now, tell me and I can save you. It's too late for the fat ass though," Naruto pointed at Jiroubou when Sakon chuckled hoarsely.

"Th-There's a reason...we were chosen as O-Orochimaru-sama's bodyguards..." his eyes now half lidded while the jinchuriki narrowed his eyes.

"It's c-cuz...we ain't a-fraid to die," a light smirk on his face as he closed his eyes- blood streaming down his chin while Naruto turned on his feet.

"Suit yourself," he muttered as he began to walk towards Tayuya.

"B-Besides...y-you really think...Orochimaru-sama w-wants Kabuto?" the whiskered blonde stopped in his tracks as he turned to find Sakon now dead in his own pool of blood.

Clenching his fists, Naruto released a sigh as he continued towards Tayuya.

"Let's go," he said seriously, snapping her out of her reverie as she nodded hesitantly.

'_Damn...I knew he was strong. But this...he can be really cold. Can't believe he was laughing just an hour ago like an idiot,'_ the red head thought as she gave him a calculative look.

"Tayuya-chan..." Naruto started, his back facing her- surprising her greatly by the way he addressed her.

"What?" her eyes narrowed as he turned his head to give her a warm smile.

"Welcome to Konohagakure."

"Huh?" she looked at him in confusion as he closed his eyes in a serene smile.

"I trust you now...so, I'm saying what I should've said to you a while back- welcome to the leaf village," she scratched her head in an awkward way.

"So you didn't trust me before?"

"Yup. I brought you only because of Kin-chan. I began to slowly trust you but I was always suspicious of you. And I think that was the main reason Kaa-san sent you on this mission with us. She wanted to know if you were truly loyal...loyal enough to go against your own village. So if you would've turned out to be a spy or something..." he turned his head away from her.

"Then?" she asked crisply.

"I would've killed you...right here," Naruto articulated in a cold tone making her eyes widen as she nodded hesitantly.

"But it's okay now! You're trustworthy, and I consider you my friend!" he turned back to grin at her, offering her his left hand. Bewildered, and feeling warm inside, at having made yet another friend- she averted her gaze before taking his hand.

"Y-Yeah...whatever," her cheeks heating up a bit as she shook hands awkwardly. Naruto just smiled at her childishly as he nodded.

"You can call me shithead from now, hehe. I won't mind," she snapped her eyes at him in surprise as he grinned sheepishly at her.

"But overdo it, and I'll get back atchya!" he threatened her light heartedly while she just averted her eyes- not knowing how to react.

"Anyway, just wanted to clear things up between us before we proceed forward. You ready?" it surprised Tayuya how he was switching his emotions so easily, his voice now serious.

"H-Hai, let's go!" she exclaimed, louder than she wanted to, not knowing why her heart was beating so fast.

The duo were soon speeding through the sky, riding on Kiyohime.

"_You got what he meant by that dying statement Ayumi-chan?"_ the blonde asked.

"_Obviously it meant that Orochimaru is after something else...but what it is, that I don't know. I guess he used Kabuto as an excuse and Sasuke as bait to pull us out. Still, you're doing this for that Uchiha woman...so I don't think it changes the situation that drastically. Either way, we just gotta face whatever he throws at us," _Ayumi said in a solemn tone making him nod.

"AH!"

WHOOSH!

Kiyohime exclaimed in surprise, narrowly dodging a barrage of sharp projectiles while Naruto held onto Tayuya by her left hand- who had fallen by the sudden movement.

"Shit! What happened Kiyohime-chan?!" the jinchuriki exclaimed as he pulled Tayuya up.

"I...happened," the blonde and the red head narrowed their eyes as they looked down to see a white haired shinobi standing on an extremely tall pillar- which looked to be made of pure bones.

"I let the others pass, but my mission is to capture you...Uzumaki Naruto," Kimimaro spoke calmly, holding a rather long sharp piece of bone while Tayuya cursed in frustration.

"Shit! I forgot to tell you about him! Dammit fuck! He's the most dangerous amongst Orochimaru's henchmen...Kimimaro. He belongs to the Kaguya clan, possessing the bloodline limit of **Shikotsumyaku **(Dead Bone Pulse). Bitch! We can't just outsmart him like those fuckers...he even defeated all of us combined single handedly!" the red head blabbered in panic while Naruto kept his eyes on Kimimaro.

"Yeah, I can see he's strong," he spoke.

'_I can see it in his eyes...they resemble mine when I was alone back in my academy days.'_

"Kiyohime-chan, you go ahead with Tayuya-chan. I'll take this guy on," Naruto uttered seriously when Tayuya put a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?! You want to face him alone?!" she exclaimed in slight anger as he gave her a cold stare- a confident look on his face.

"I'll say in your words then...don't fucking underestimate me, ever Tayuya-chan."

She continued to stare at him for a few seconds before retracting her hand when he grabbed it. The redhead looked at him in surprise as he offered her a light smile.

"Friends should have faith in each other, right?" it was more of a statement than a question as she lowered her gaze.

"Yes..." her voice uncertain before she offered him an awkward smile.

"I guess, I'll have faith in you getting your ass kicked," a mischievous smirk on her face making him sweatdrop.

"Uh...yeah, thanks for the vote of confidence."

"If I weren't a patient man Uzumaki Naruto, and you're lucky that I am...I won't be giving you time for character development up there," Kimimaro's calm voice broke the atmosphere as a vein popped on the blonde's head.

"Shut up you dork! It's called connecting! CONNECTING! I was connecting with her! Now I have another reason to kick your ass!" steam came out of the blonde's nose as he pumped his fists.

Wham!

"Gah!" Naruto exclaimed upon receiving a kick to his butt as he went flying off Kiyohime while Tayuyo just cleansed her ear with her pinky- a bored expression on her face.

"Enough of this bullshit. Let's go 'what'sh yer name by the way'," she uttered while ignoring Naruto's shout of 'Tayuya you shit of a bitch!"

Kimimaro watched the falling blonde calmly as he jumped off the tall bone pillar to land in a grass field.

THUP!

Having created a small crater due to his landing, Naruto stood up with a stern face while the bone user just greeted him with a neutral look.

"_You could've just ignored this guy and continue forward to others Naruto,"_ Ayumi said.

"_What that guy said before dying is troubling me. I have to know more about Orochimaru's plan so that I can warn others. You yourself said Ayumi-chan, wars alone can be won if right information is gathered at the right time. This Kimimaro looks like someone who might be close enough to Orochimaru to know something important,"_ the blonde uttered as silence ensued in his mindscape after that.

"Those eyes...Orochimaru-sama wants those eyes. And I'll do everything in my power to see that he gets what he wants," Kimimaro uttered as he pointed a finger at Naruto. A bone shrapnel began to pierce through the tip of the finger before it fired towards the jinchuriki at whipping speeds.

CLKK!

A momentary look of surprise crossed the Kaguya clan's prodigy as he watched the shrapnel bounce of a thin wall of ice which had formed on the right palm of Naruto.

'_What's up with this obsession with that snake fuck. First that crystal woman, and now this guy,'_ he clenched his fist in anger, breaking the thin ice wall in the process while glaring at his opponent.

'_That bastard really knows how to manipulate anyone. Brainwashing all his henchmen just to achieve his goals...all of them are being used, being played as pawns and they don't even realize it. The worst part is...they all are ready to die for him!'_ pursing his lips tightly, lightning began to crackle around his hands when he dashed forward at his full speed.

Kimimaro took a surprised step back at the sudden speed and just as he composed himself- the blurred jinchuriki was upon him as he unleashed a flurry of palm strikes upon him.

Thik! Thwish!...Thwak!

The Kaguya could only grunt as his feet slid back due to the force, his stomach bent while Naruto's hands were barely a visible blur.

"HAA!" the blonde exclaimed as he gave a final palm thrust to his chest- expulsing large amounts of chakra in a second as Kimimaro went soaring back.

'_That should...'_ the whiskered blonde's thoughts trailed when he watched his white haired opponent grind his feet against the ground before stopping himself. Looking closely, he could make out two long slash marks on the ground where Kimimaro had slid.

"Quite the skilled shinobi you are...very few are capable of using ninjutsu after being struck so brutally by the gentle fist, and more so after I numbed your body with my lightning," Naruto spoke as he straightened his slightly bent knees to stand straight.

"That wasn't ninjutsu..." Kimimaro lifted his face- his expression stony as ever while he patted his chest to get rid of the smoke curtain.

"My **Shikotsumyaku** is a taijutsu type kekkei genkai. And besides, gentle fist isn't effective against me," he said while plucking his feet one after other out of the ground- showing bone spikes having protruded out of the base of his feet.

"There's a reason I was especially sent to capture you. I know all about you, all your abilities...and the wide variety of ninjutsu and taijutsu you possess. But no matter how strong your attacks are, if you can't pierce my ultimate defence, then you are already defeated."

"_Ayumi-chan, you know anything about his bloodine limit?"_ Naruto questioned inwardly.

"_As far as I know, the Kaguya clan were a bunch of battle loving barbarians. They were specialized warriors, with their bloodline limit being the spine of their strengths. Shikotsumyaku, as he said, is a taijutsu bloodline. It rocket fires a person's defence- being almost impenetrable by normal shinobi standards. Also, they all were taijutsu masters- being of even greater calibre that Maito Guy. Even the Hyuga clan feared them in the second great shinobi war- cause the Kaguya warriors could create a chakra enhanced layer of bone inside their skin...being able to protect all their charka points, like he did just now. You have to be really careful here Naruto,"_ she warned while he nodded when the lightning around his fists and feet slowly died down.

"I guess Raiken is ineffective against him then," he muttered to himself before analyzing the situation before him.

'_There's only one element which holds the possibility of penetrating his defences,'_ the blonde thought when Kimimaro crouched a bit, crossing his forearms in front of his face.

"**Yanagi no Mai** (Dance of the Willow)"

The jinchuriki watched as several long bone blades began to protrude out of Kimimaro's elbows, knees, palms and his shoulders.

"**Tajuu...Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**," Naruto muttered calmly, forming the required handseal as several clones formed beside him. Giving them the mental commands, the clones dashed to their respective positions- surrounding the two of them in a circular way while the white haired shinobi glanced at them calmly.

"_Nice tactic...you sure know how to use your linked vision in battles now,"_ Ayumi commented when the blonde blurred through a few handseals.

"**Fuuton: Dai Kamaitachi **(Wind Release: Great Cutting Whirlwind)" he whispered to himself, as the wind around him sped towards the Kaguya, creating howling sounds.

Not wasting any time, Kimimaro began to dash forwards when he launched himself in air using a chakra enhanced jump- dodging the attack. Pointing his palms at the standing blonde while in midair, he fired several bone blades.

SWISH!

His eyes widening at their speeds, Naruto barely jumped sideways as they lodged into the dirt.

Clk! Thk! Kflk!

'_He's fast!'_

Flipping himself backwards just in time to dodge another flurry of blades, he landed on the ground before making a run for where his opponent was about to land. Taking out several shuriken, he hurled them towards the Kaguya before seaming through a set of hand seals.

"**Raiton: Dai Kangekiha **(Lightning Release: Great Inspiration Wave)"

Parrying away the shuriken with his blades easily, Kimimaro looked on as several glowing beams of lightning approached him at whipping speeds. Naruto's eyes widened as his opponent just absorbed the beams with his bone blades.

'_Shit of course! Bone is not a conductor of electricity...'_ an afterthought crossed his mind before he launched a flying kick at the Kaguya. Dodging blurrily, Kimimaro fired a blade from his elbow towards the blonde just behind him.

Naruto ducked sideways, the blade grazing against his shoulder while his right leg blurred towards Kimimaro in the form of a roundhouse kick.

The jinchuriki's eyes widened when several bone spikes came out of the white haired shinobi's left cheek, where the kick was heading.

'_Shit!'_

Stopping his foot just barely an inch away from the spikes, the whiskered quickly jumped off his hands to flip himself back to his feet before again taking a mad dash towards his standing opponent.

"You think it's that easy," Kimimaro spoke with his back facing the approaching blonde as he fired several bone blades from his back.

Jumping over them acrobatically, the agile blonde whizzed towards him as he slipped a kunai into his hand from the sleeve of his sweatshirt. Kimimaro quickly turned as he thrust his palm towards the approaching kunai.

CLKK!

'_What the...'_ Naruto thought in surprise, gritting his teeth as he put more strength behind the kunai.

"My bones are chakra infused, and they are stronger than tempered steel. You think your pitiful attacks will work? Your speed is of no use if you can't penetrate my defence," the Kaguya clan prodigy voiced when a bone blade, having come out his palm began to push the kunai back.

KRRK!

Naruto pupils zoomed out when the kunai began to crack under the pressure.

KCHRSSH!

Being broken into several pieces, the blonde released the kunai before jumping back to dodge the approaching blade.

'_What's with this guy? His bones...even for a chakra infused material, they are insanely strong. Even while I was pushing wind natured chakra through the kunai, still it wasn't enough to pierce his defence...'_

Narrowing his eyes, he went through three seals before holding his right palm downwards with his left hand.

"Let's see if this works!"

CHRRSHHK!

"I see...that's Sharingan no Kakashi's technique," Kimimaro uttered when the Rinnegan user bolted towards him at mind boggling speeds.

"**Tsubaki no Mai **(Dance of Camellia)"

The sounds of chirping birds got louder as a large bone came out of his palm when Naruto reached him in a blur.

"**Chidori!"**

**KRAKCH!**

The blonde gritted his teeth as he put more force behind his thrust, his lightning covered hand now trying to pierce Kimimaro's chest.

Whoosh!

The jinchuriki flipped over him, swirling several times in midair as he narrowly dodged the bone sword that was about to pierce his gut.

'_Shit, not even Chidori...'_

"If it weren't for the vision that you and your clones share, you'd be dead by now," Naruto glared into the calm pools of Kimimaro, when the latter crouched in a strange position- holding the bone hilt sword before bolting towards the blonde.

Taking a few steps back involuntarily, the jinchuriki prepared himself as Kimimaru unleashed a barrage of stabs at him.

'_He's really fast!'_ Naruto began to dodge the strikes with agility that was now surprising the bone user. Narrowing his eyes, indicating his slight frustration- he began to strike chaotically, continuousy...

Swish!

Swosh!

Thawsh!

Naruto's eyes widened at the sudden wildness, finding it difficult to read his opponent's movements as he began to jump back to create some distance. Not letting him loose, Kimimaro fired some shrapnel from his other hand making the blonde loose his balance in dodging them. Seeing the opening, the Kaguya fired forward at full speeds, the bone sword slicing through the wind towards Naruto's skull.

...

"**SHINRA TENSEI!**"

KRRBHOOM!

The next thing Kimimaru knew, he was flying back at breakneck speeds. Flipping himself in midair, he used the bone blade to skid to a halt.

'_That was too close for comfort...'_ Naruto sighed as he stood up while watching a crouched Kimimaro.

"The ace up your sleeve huh? Orochimaru-sama did warn me about those gravity techniques of y-" the blonde watched in surprise when his opponent began to cough violently, spitting out blood in his hands.

"_That isn't the result of Shinra Tensei is it Ayumi-chan?"_ he questioned in confusion while the Kaguya wiped the blood off his lips.

"_No...he must be ill,"_ Ayumi spoke as the bone user stood up shakily, now breathing a bit heavily.

"You're ill, and yet you still choose to serve him," Naruto spoke in a solemn tone while Kimimaro breathed deeply to compose himself.

"You are a jinchuriki Uzumaki Naruto, so you should understand what it is like to have no purpose in life. You were an orphan too, but you found a purpose in your life- your village, Konoha became your purpose. But for a village-less, clan-less orphan like me...there was no purpose. Orochimaru-sama became that purpose. We are enemies in this scenario, each driven by our own purpose, the purpose for which we live, the purpose for which we fight...and we are not afraid to die for that purpose. If you were in my shoes Uzumaki Naruto, what would you have done?" again there was that calm exterior as the blonde jinchuriki glared at him.

"What you're doing right now is not fighting, it's suicide. You're not fighting for a purpose, no...you are NOT fighting. You are running away. Running away from your life, from your loneliness. Isn't that right? You can't bear that loneliness anymore. Orochimaru, although he gave you something to live for, he couldn't give you what you wanted, what orphans like us want. A meagre purpose like that is trash," Naruto articulated, inwardly noting the surprised look that crossed Kimimaro's eyes for a moment. The blonde clenched his fists as he remembered someone else, who was similar to the guy in front of him.

_"Can you understand? Not having a dream… not being needed by anyone… the pain of_ _merely being alive."_

_"I realised the most painful thing… that in this world…_ _my existence was not needed."_

_"I want to protect the person important to me… I want to work for that person. I want to fight for that person. I want to make that person's dream come true… that is my dream."_

"If you have to dedicate yourself to someone just so you can become his tool, that's not life. Life is about freedom, about doing what you like, as long as it doesn't hurt others. But if you're hurting yourself, just so you could be of use to someone, that's definitely not life! And if that someone is a muthafucker like Orochimaru, then that's stupidity at its peak's peak!" by the end Naruto was yelling while Kimimaro glared at him, his eyes icy cold.

"Don't you dare insult Orochimaru-sama."

"See that? That's what he does to you guys, brainwashing! Manipulating you your whole lives! If he cares so much for you, if he means that much to you, then tell why the fuck he sent you in this state! And that too to fight a jinchuriki no less! Can't you see it's a suicide mission?!"

"SHUT UP!" the blonde stopped in surprise upon hearing Kimimaro shout, the calm exterior giving way to anger on his face now as chakra began to rotate around him, now visible to the naked eye.

"**Tessenka no Mai: Tsuru** (Dance of the Clematis: Vine)" the jinchuriki could only watch in shock as his white haired opponent slowly ripped out his own spinal column, a new one already replacing it at astounding rates.

"_Ayumi-chan...?"_

"_Shit, I had no idea they were capable of even this. That's just disgusting!" _she exclaimed.

"It's not brainwashing! It's my own reasoning! What would you know huh?!" the Kaguya yelled as he sliced his spinal column, sporting spikes around it- towards one of Naruto's clones. Surprisingly for the blonde, the spinal column stretched in a blur even to his Rinnegan as Kimimaro swung it in a wide arc- taking out all the clones in the process.

'_Holy...how the hell did it stretch?'_

Looking closely, the blonde could make out cartilages connecting the spinal bones- allowing for flexibility.

"Shit!" he ducked down just in time to avoid the incoming spinal whip- cutting some of his hair in the process. Retracting it, the Kaguya dashed at him while again swinging the whip at him. Naruto's eyes widened at the increased speed, gritting his teeth as he jumped high in the air reflexively.

"I think you're the manipulator here!" Kimimaro yelled as he again swung the spinal whip, this time even faster than before.

CLUFK!

"Gah!" the blonde cried in pain as the whip coiled tightly around his body, the spikes piercing his skin as he landed on the ground- gritting his teeth in pain.

**Valley of The End**

"Shit! He fucking tricked us! That bastard!" Anko exclaimed in anger as she glared hatefully at Orochimaru and Kabuto standing on Madara's statue head.

"Can't believe that even Jiraiya, in sage mode, was tricked by the **Shikon no Jutsu **(Dead Soul Technique)," Orochimaru spoke with a chuckle as Mikoto narrowed her eyes.

"When did you...we made sure no one came near the captured Kabuto,"she said.

"Oh it was long before that Mikoto dear. It was even before he was captured. Kabuto-kun here is very skilled you see...especially when it comes to reanimating corpses to use as decoys. Even the best of medics can't tell if they are fake. Right when we were fighting Jiraiya that day, Kabuto had come up with his nice plan to pull you Konoha shinobi out where we wanted. He could've gotten out of that the **Yomi Numa **technique of Jiraiya back then...but it was all planned right there and then."

"Well, we did suspect foul play," Mikoto muttered as she gazed at the corpse lying at her feet- which was supposed to be Kabuto which they had brought along.

"What's the plan now Mikoto-sama?" Yamato questioned as she closed her eyes to take a deep breath.

"We fight. I came here for my son, and I'm not going back without him. Besides, it's only the two of the-" the syllables died in her throat, their eyes widening at what was being slowly revealed to them while Orochimaru smirked at them.

"You didn't think we would come unprepared did you?"

The fog, which was covering the lake below- had slowly cleared up for Mikoto's team to now see hundreds of Oto shinobi standing on water down there.

'_No...'_

"I guess it now makes us roughly just about six hundred two huh?!" the snake sanin uttered with a cackle while Sakura's pupils zoomed out in primal fear, staring at the army below them.

**With Naruto**

"You Konoha shinobi are all full of bullshit! All you can do is preach about this and that! You think whatever you say, whatever you do is always right?!" the bone user pulled the whip more, tightening it around the blonde's body as the spikes embedded deeper into his skin.

Naruto closed his one eye in pain as he glared at his opponent.

"That's what losers like you always complain! Jealousy, that is what's speaking right now! We are not always right, but atleast we learn from our mistakes instead of people like you who just succumb to into their darkness! All you do is piss, moan and whine! Just like you're doing right now! Orochimaru-sama this! Orochimaru-sama that!" disgust was clearly evident on the jinchuriki's face. Gritting his teeth in rage, the Earth curse seal on the middle of Kimimaro's chest began to act as he entered the second curse mark stage straight away- his features now demonic too.

"_Naruto stop it. He's gone too deep now. Words won't affect him. I know what you're trying to do but...look at him, he's just completely obsessed. It's just better if you put him out of his misery,"_ Ayumi spoke in a melancholic tone making the blonde narrow his eyes. Feeling wet drops on his skin, he vaguely noticed that it had started to rain- the sky now turning dark.

"I see...that confidence on your face. I'll break that look of surety first," oddly the blind rage was replaced again by that calm expression on Kimimaro's face, holding the whip with his left hand as he lifted his right hand in front of his face.

"You earlier accused Orochimaru-sama of sending me on a suicide mission huh? You're so sure you can defeat me. That's where you'll lose this battle. Even if I'm ill, I'll defeat you with my will. I'll show you how strong my devotion to Orochimaru-sama is. Then maybe, you'll understand it's not just desperation on my side, or brainwashing...it's what I choose deliberately."

His right hand began to glow with chakra as he whispered to himself.

"**Tessenka no Mai: Hana **(Dance of the Clematis: Flower)"

A large spiralled bone weapon began to form out of his forearm, narrowing into a sharp tip at its end.

"Your hands are trapped, so you can't do any ninjutsu. Not even that gravity technique of yours. This is it for you, now let's see if it was really a suicide mission," Kimimaro muttered.

"Even if you kill me, you still won't be surviving for much longer. Either way, you're gonna die," Naruto spoke with a grave expression, a thin line of blood leaking out of the corner of his lips.

"If Orochimaru-sama achieves what he wants, it won't be a suicide. I would be dying for a cause, a death worthy of a shinobi," he uttered, water streaming down his cheeks due to the heavy downpour. Digging his foot into the wet ground, Kimimaro blurred forward with his large weapon while Naruto just stared at him calmly.

"Now aren't you the one just giving up on life. Just standing there and accepting it like a coward?!" the bone user exclaimed as he neared the blonde.

POOF!

The world began to move in slow motion as Kimimaro's eyes widened when a seal-less shadow clone popped into existence beside Naruto, a Rasengan already forming in its right hand as it whizzed towards him in a counter attack.

"Stop deluding yourself you bastard!"

His body being slowed down by the heavy weapon, Kimimaro had no chance.

"**RASENGAN!**"

A bright flash of white burst out in a shockwave due to the impact. Kimimaro gritted his teeth as the two of them stood there in a clash- the clone trying to overpower him, the bone user having created a layer of bone in his gut at the last second.

"I will... not ...fail!" words slipped through the Kaguya's gritted teeth as he held his ground while the clone too was gritting his teeth, pushing the ball of spiralling chakra as hard he could- trying to pierce his defence.

"And I will, shatter your delusion!" the clone lifted his other hand to bring it in front of Kimimaro's face, the latter's eyes widening in realization.

"Don't fool yourself...IN BELIEVING THAT YOU CAN FOOL ME!" his pupils zoomed out as the left hand began to glow with white chakra- inches away from Kimimaro's face.

"**SHINRA TENSEI!"**

**Tell me how'd it go. It's been a while since I wrote something, and my skills may caught some rust. Still I hope it was enjoyable for you. Till next time! :D**

**And yes, I'll update my other fics too if that's what you're wondering! ^_^**

**N6023**


	53. Purloined!

**AHH! Hey guys! Guess I'm back with another chapter. :D**

**Well, the reason for my long absence are several factors- and I'm not going to bore you with that. All you guys need to know is that I will not abandon my stories, life may get in the way and thus lead to long update gaps- but I'll keep trying my best to keep going.**

**Readers in large numbers have been asking me to continue, and I guess that was the major factor for me to not give up on my stories after such a long gap. So I will continue writing as long as you guys are there supporting me, cause that makes you feel like you are needed somewhere and you do your best not to disappoint anyone. **

**I know all of you are disappointed, but rest assured I was always trying my best- fighting with the situations and wanting to continue my stories- that's the reason there was no 'HIATUS A/N' this whole year. I just didn't want to give up on my stories, and you guys also made sure of that. So thanks a lot for sticking with me. :)**

**For all the readers who PM'ed me, thank you very much! I'm sorry I didn't reply, but I thought what better reply than to directly give the chapter! I hope that answers the most frequently asked question of my readers- 'Are you alive?' :P**

**I know you're reading the story after such a long time, so you might want to go to that 'Info Section' of this fic on my profile- at least so you know what's going on, and who is who basically.**

**Now let's move on to what you're really here for-**

* * *

><p><span><strong>Chapter 53- Purloined!<strong>

* * *

><p>"<strong>I will... not ...fail!" words slipped through the Kaguya's gritted teeth as he held his ground while the clone too was gritting his teeth, pushing the ball of spiralling chakra as hard as he could- trying to pierce his defence.<strong>

"**And I will, shatter your delusion!" the clone lifted his other hand to bring it in front of Kimimaro's face, the latter's eyes widening in realization.**

"**Don't fool yourself...IN BELIEVING THAT YOU CAN FOOL ME!" his pupils zoomed out as the left hand began to glow with white chakra- inches away from Kimimaro's face.**

"**SHINRA TENSEI!"**

The real Naruto watched as his opponent was blasted off his feet, a shockwave erupting from the impact as his clone dispelled himself.

He stood there unmoving as Kimimaro's limp body skid to a halt on the muddy ground, the clouds now thundering violently as it continued to rain heavily.

"_You better hurry Naruto, the others will need your help," _Ayumi voiced softly making him blink as he nodded lightly.

'_Now to get this piece of bone off me,'_ he thought while looking at Kimimaro's spinal column which was wrapped around him in a death grip, the spikes having been embedded in his skin. Moving even an inch hurt like a bitch.

"_Just use Shinra Tensei..." _Ayumi uttered, sensing his predicament.

"_Can't, usually when I use it it's in a particular direction. I have to exert it__ in__ all directions equally to get this thing off, so let's just says I'm not at that level right now," _the blonde explained calmly as he kept watching the wet ground, gears turning in his head.

"_Then cut this thing off dammit! We're getting late..." _she hissed, kind of irked by his calm demeanour in such a situation.

"This 'thing' is as hard as tempered steel, as he just said," this time he said aloud while glancing at Kimimaro, before his eyes widened suddenly as he remember something- something that was in the back of his head since his fight with that crystal woman.

Naruto concentrated when three clones popped beside him, as they nodded to him.

"_What are you planning no-"_

"_N-Naruto! Can you hear me!?" _

Ayumi was interrupted by a panicked voice from the Uzushio link as he answered immediately.

"_What's wrong Anko-chan?_"

For Anko to panic like that, this ought to be something big.

"_GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE REAL QUICK! We're trapped! That bastard as expected tricked us! He's got his whole army down here at The Valley of End! They've surrounded us completely!_" before he could utter a single word in response, she had cut the link off.

He cursed under his breath when he turned to his clones upon hearing their shout of excitement. They grinned at him, each of their hands over one another- as if they were covering something. Removing them slowly, his eyes widened in surprise when he saw a shining crystal blade in the palm of his middle clone's hand.

"Okay, now let's try if this works!" he exclaimed as the middle clone raised his hand a bit, holding the crystal blade- before swinging it down towards the spinal column.

Naruto winced a bit as the slash also put a cut over his right ribcage, though he couldn't help but smirk as he saw the blade easily cut through the piece of bone.

"It worked!" the clone whooped as the other two clones slowly pulled the spinal whip off Naruto's body, the blonde closing his eyes at the pain.

"_So you strengthened your crystal release, nice!" _Ayumi cheered, clearly excited by this new development, though she was perplexed as to how he had done it so quickly- having barely worked on it these past few days.

"_I didn't strengthen it..__. just__ changed the basic element used for creating it. After fighting with that crystal woman back then, and seeing how much stronger her crystal release was, I had suspected that the elements __stated__ in Mito's scroll were wrong," _Naruto answered as he closed his eyes while his clones dispelled themselves.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Naruto's Mindscap<strong>**e**

* * *

><p>"The elements were stated to be wind, water and lightning in the scroll. I changed those elements to earth, water and lightning," the blonde uttered as he faded into his mind scape, now standing in front of Ayumi with a thin layer of newly formed crystal in his right hand.<p>

The bijuu nodded with a serious expression as she pointed a finger at him.

"I get it. And I think we've wasted enough of our time here," she said with an irked countenance on her face. Naruto's eyebrows lifted a bit in surprise as he suddenly vanished from his mind scape.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Valley<strong>** of The End: With Others**

* * *

><p>"Shit, we're done for aren't we?" Anko muttered with a deep frown, the group standing still- surrounded by hundreds of Oto shinobi.<p>

Hinata gulped as a bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face while Sakura was finding it difficult to comprehend the situation they were in. Her hands were clenched white into fists, willing them to stop from trembling.

The area was deathly silent, only the pitter-patter of the rain audible to everyone while Orochimaru had an amused smirk on his face.

He loved the look of desperation on his opponents, especially those cute little genin in front of him.

"Mikoto-sama, I think it's clear that our main priority now should be to retreat. Clearly we didn't expect Orochimaru to go this far," Yamato spoke in a low tone as the group stood with their backs to each other, facing their enemies surrounding them- most of them standing down there on the lake while the others surrounded them from the forest side behind them.

The Uchiha matriarch had a frustrated scowl on her face as she pursed her lips, her eyes narrowed in a glare directed towards the snake sanin.

"The choice is yours Mikoto-chan. Either you all can come with me without any futile resistance or you can fight, get your squad killed, possibly including you-second time that is, and I'll take your corpses back with me," Orochimaru spoke, his expression clearly indicating he was enjoying the situation.

Mikoto narrowed her eyes as she clenched her kunai, the kunoichi torn up over having to make such a decision.

She desperately wanted to see her son.

And there was no way she was going to let anything happen to her squad.

"And oh, did I tell you the advantage of the first choice? It's obvious if you come quietly with me, alive that is, you get to spend time with your beloved son?" seeing her eyes widen for a second there told the sanin he had just made the decision a bit easier for her.

"Don't let yourself be done in by that bastard's words Mikoto-sama! You know how manipulative he can be," Anko hissed with a frown making Mikoto nod slowly.

"I know... he's just toying with us anyway. That's the reason they haven't attacked us yet... he knows he has completely got us trapped here," the Uchiha stated as droplets of water cascaded down her face.

"With this many surrounding us, the chances of every one of us escaping is... I'm not sure if even a decoy strategy would work," Yamato spoke in a low tone.

"We need Naruto, he's the key here. With him, dare I say, and with some proper planning... we can even turn this around over them," Anko muttered making Mikoto and Yamato look at her like she was losing it under the pressure.

The snake fire queen just glanced at their squad leader with a serious expression on her face.

"You gotta believe me when I say this that he has the capability of turning impossible situations around. We HAVE to keep our calm and wait for him. I already informed Tayuya via the Uzushio link, so she will be arriving with him here very soon... in fact, they should be here any second now," Anko worded as she continued to eye her enemies surrounding her for any surprise attacks.

"Oh don't worry so much my dear Anko-chan, they're waiting for your squad to make the first move. It all depends on you, they're just there to react according to the choice you make," Orochimaru's chakra-enhanced voice boomed throughout the Valley of The End, a faint chuckle escaping his lips at the end.

"It's obvious they're waiting for their jinchuriki," Kabuto spoke as his plain black hood ruffled with the wind.

"Well I'm waiting for him too. This gathering wouldn't be complete without him now would it?" the sanin had that patented smirk on his face as he stood on Madara's statue with Mikoto's squad standing on the elevated ground behind the first hokage's statue.

"First tell me where's Sasuke-kun!" Mikoto yelled, surprising her squad with her sudden outburst when Orochimaru burst out laughing.

"AHAHAHAHAAA! Well...I have to say, I was counting how many seconds before you fired your money question!" he said, parting a bang of his hair from in front of his left eye.

"All in good time Mikoto-chan. Let's hear your choice first..."

_"Anko-chan! Wherever you guys are, all of you... spike your chakra!"_ Naruto's voice cut off whatever Orochimaru was saying in Anko's mind as she nodded inwardly immediately.

"All of you, Naruto just asked us to spike our chakra. Do it, quick! And don't form any hand seals!" she spoke quietly with a sense of urgency making Mikoto along with others nod lightly.

_'What does that boy have in mind...?' _Yamato pondered as his chakra levels began to increase while Sakura just stood with her fists clenched, how the hell was she supposed to build chakra without any hand seals? She wasn't at that level yet!

"Sakura-chan..." the panicking kunoichi snapped her gaze at Hinata upon hearing her voice.

"Don't worry... this is meant for Naruto-kun's summon to sense our exact location. Just stay still," how Hinata was still so calm given the situation was beyond her.

_"Whatever happens Anko-chan, stay still okay!? Don't move a freaking muscle!" _the snake mistress relayed the message to others.

"You sure about this?" Yamato spoke in a doubtful tone when Anko shrugged with a chuckle escaping her lips.

"Nope, but he is," she grinned when the group began to feel a slight tremor beneath them. The ground began to shake as even the Oto shinobi began to stumble, trying to regain their footing.

_"Stay still all of you!"_ now Anko was seriously wondering what the blonde was planning?

Wait, oh no... then this earthquake...?

"Shit! Whatever happens, don't move okay!" she suddenly yelled as the ground beneath them began to crack.

"I don't think w-"

KRRCK!

Next, what happened Orochimaru and his forces could only stand and watch as within a matter of split seconds, a _HUGE_ dragon burst forth the ground, exactly where Mikoto's squad was standing- it's large mouth wide open as it engulfed the whole squad- large chunks of earth flying in all directions while the Oto shinobi jumped onto the higher branches of the tall trees.

Going with its momentum, the humongous dragon soared higher into the sky before opening its wings, flapping them now to stay afloat as the grey sky roared thunderously followed by a flash of lightning.

"AAAARHHHHHH! I DON'T WANNA DIEEEE!" Sakura screeched as she along with others were gulped down by the serpentine dragon. The group were currently being flooded inwards along with the good chunk of earth that was eaten along with them.

All of them suddenly found themselves falling towards a rubbery ground- now in what seemed to be like the reptile's stomach.

"Gross dammit!" Anko yelled as she tried to get rid of a string of saliva that had got stuck to her trench coat while they landed with Sakura falling on her butt.

"Is this Naruto-kun's summon?" Mikoto muttered as she stood there with her squad- her voice echoing inside.

POOF!

"Hah! Found you!" Naruto shunshin-ed into existence along with Tayuya.

"Naruto-kun! Are you okay!?" Hinata exclaimed upon seeing his torn up wear as he just nodded in reply before turning to Mikoto.

"So wha-"

"Where the hell were you?" Anko asked in confusion making him sigh, perhaps his squad members just didn't understand the urgency of the situation they were in.

"We thought you were gonna be flushed into the other stomach!" Kiyohime chimed in, rather cheerfully- pointing behind her.

"Other stomach?" Anko asked, a perplexed look on her face making the chirpy pink haired dragon-currently in her human form nod.

"Of course! At first even to m-"

"Is this a fucking reunion we're having after ten years!? You forgot the situation we're in!?" Tayuya interrupted with a deep scowl making Naruto nod with her, the blonde staring at Kiyohime disapprovingly- making her shrink under his gaze as she squeaked out a barely audible 'sorry'.

"Aren't we safe now? We're currently heading towards Konoha right?" Anko spoke with a raised eyebrow making Tayuya sigh in frustration as she blew out a red strand of her hair from her face.

"Shithe- Naruto here has some business with Uchiha-sama it seems," the ex-Oto kunoichi muttered, awkwardly giving respect to Mikoto- she wasn't used to this after all.

"Well at least we're out of that nightmare place, I thought we were gonna die shannaro!" Sakura breathed out a sigh of relief while Mikoto was standing quietly as she gazed at the ground- lost in her own thoughts.

"Mikoto-chan, you're the squad leader so... what do you say we should do?" Naruto stepped forward as he ignored the incessant rambling around him.

"Isn't it obvious what our next course of action should be? Clearly no one could've imagined that Orochimaru would pop out with an army of his sound shinobi given the fact most of his forces were wiped out during the invasion. We have to retreat for now, I can't believe that four-eyed fucker Jiraiya-sama captured was a fake all along," Anko spoke as she turned to Mikoto to find her not meeting her gaze.

The snake mistress narrowed her eyes while Naruto continued to look at Mikoto.

"Is there...," Anko began.

"...something I'm missing?"

Yamato, who had been quiet all along knew something was up given the way Naruto and Mikoto were acting.

"I know you're torn up over the decision, so I advise you order them...," the blonde spoke, indicating towards everyone on the squad except him and Mikoto.

"...to return to the village and we-"

"Hey what!?"Anko exclaimed, her eyes narrowed as the jinchuriki continued to speak.

"-can look for Sasuke. Hinata-chan, can you check with your Uzume to check what they're up to down there?" he finished when Anko grabbed his trench coat tightly, a pissed off expression on her face.

"I hope this is not one of your fucked up jokes Naruto," she spoke with gritted teeth as he narrowed his eyes at her.

"Stop fighting you two," Anko turned upon hearing the Uchiha matriarch's soft voice.

"I've decided. This is my order as your squad leader, _all_ of you go back, even you Naruto," she spoke with authority making them look at her in surprise.

"Not possible, I'm coming with you," the jinchuriki had a serious countenance on his face.

"Mikoto-sama, can you explain what's going on here?" Anko spoke calmly, holding her anger in while Sakura and Kiyohime watched the exchange in silence, not liking where this was going.

"I'm sorry, but I have to meet Sasuke-kun at least once, he's my son. And I believe I can make him come back. We may not get this chance again, so I can't miss this opportunity."

"This..." Anko breathed in as she closed her eyes.

"You're a kunoichi aren't you? Why are you letting your emotions rule you like this? You go down there and you know it's suicide. Sasuke's not even here, how will you find him?" she asked as Mikoto averted her gaze.

"I'm going with Orochimaru," she replied making their eyes widen.

"I can't believe this..." an angry scowl on her face, Anko inhaled again to calm herself.

"You've lost it..." she spoke, now closing her eyes while everyone else was surprised at what was going on.

"I don't know the background behind all this, nor do I know about your personal matters but... you're letting your emotions rule you Mikoto-sama. I was doubting Hokage-sama's decision earlier to send you on this mission as a squad leader. You taking this mission personally was something I was hoping against," Yamato uttered with a sigh.

Mikoto however looked at Anko, steeling herself.

"You don't know what it's like to be a mother when both your sons are out there as missing nins, trying to kill each other. None of you understand and nor do I expect you to," her voice now cold as Anko looked at her in surprise.

_"You shouldn't have told her about Itachi attacking you Naruto-kun,"_ Ayumi spoke softly, sadness in her tone.

"Yeah, we don't understand... but it's your fault for pushing those away who are trying to help you," Naruto growled as he glared at the Uchiha matriarch making her eyes soften.

"Naruto-kun..."

Her lips tugged into a desperate smile as she noticed Anko looking at her coldly.

"We Uchiha are cursed aren't we? Wherever we go, we're bound to cause trouble. It's-"

"You were never just an Uchiha to me, you were always Mikoto-chan to me. And I don't care what you say, but I can't let you go with Orochimaru. You obviously don't value your life enough, but I do!" he exclaimed. Just when Mikoto was about to retort, Hinata intervened.

"Um Naruto-kun, it's... Sasuke-san just arrived down there," she muttered softly, her Toyotama Byakugan active as she stood up, now cancelling Uzume.

Mikoto's eyes widened a bit, a look of urgency flickering in her eyes.

"I have to go," she spoke with finality after turning away from the group, looking upwards into the dark passage from where they'd fallen.

"You're n-"

"I order all of you to return to the village immediately," Naruto clenched his fists tightly in anger as he glared at Mikoto's back.

POOF!

He kept starting at the empty space as she shunshin-ed away.

"Dialong-sama, can you do that jutsu? I don't want anyone in here except me to be able to mould their chakra from now on?"

"**It is always in effect in my body. The moment someone gets inside, he or she can't mould their chakra effectively, except the summoner of course. I just let that Hyuga mould her chakra for a little while because you ordered her**," Dialong's booming voice echoed inside as Anko's eyes widened along with others.

"Wait what the...!?" the snake mistress exclaimed.

"I can't...activate my Byakugan anymore," Hinata said, looking at Naruto with a frown while the blonde held an apologetic look in his eyes.

"Naruto you seriously can't...!" Sakura exclaimed with wide eyes while Tayuya cursed under her breath.

"Please don't let Mikoto-chan escape," Naruto said loudly.

"**The Uchiha woman?**"

"Hai..." the jinchuriki turned to find Anko glaring at him, a deep scowl on her face while Yamato too looked to be frowning.

"I know none of you approve of what's going on, but this is something I have to help Mikoto-chan in. I don't want any of you getting hurt so please try to understand," he explained.

"Cut your bullshit!" Anko growled as she grabbed the blonde's wrist in a blur making him scowl.

"Anko-chan please leave my hand," an expressionless look on his face while the snake mistress just regarded him with her cold orbs.

"If that woman doesn't have any regard for her own life, that doesn't mean I'll let you take this suicide leap after her. Obviously you think you're some kind of an invincible hero who can take on an army with just the two of you," she uttered sternly, tightening her grip on his wrist as anger flashed in Naruto's oceanic pools.

"Really, so now it's 'that' woman instead of 'Mikoto-sama' huh? Well let me tell you...," the jinchuriki's eyes grew cold as he glared at Anko, taking her aback.

"THAT woman had her whole clan wiped out in a single night by her eldest son. THAT women has both of her sons trying to kill each other. THAT woman is fighting alone against all the shit life has thrown at her. THAT woman was there for me in the past when NO ONE was there," Anko's grip loosened at his harsh words, her widened eyes getting wet as they narrowed in rage while Hinata and Sakura too seemed surprised at his outburst.

"So sorry if my conscience doesn't allow me to leave THAT woman alone, fending for herself down there!" he growled, freeing his wrist with a jerk of his hand.

Naruto turned away from them as he looked at Anko, and then Hinata from the corner of his eyes.

"I came prepared for this. So I'm telling you, I will not die. I'll return with Mikoto-chan, with or without Sasuke," he stated sternly before dissolving into water.

Anko was sporting a frown on her face, her eyes clenched shut as a single tear slid down her cheek.

_'That stubborn idiot...'_

* * *

><p><span><strong>Outside: Valley of the End<strong>

* * *

><p>Orochimaru gazed calmly at the huge brown serpentine dragon, it's eyes blood red with five claws in its two appendages- it was clear the summon was a fifth blaze dragon.<p>

"Orochim-"

"Stay put, I know that Uchiha woman, and especially that boy... they'll be back, just stay on alert. The kyuubi jinchuriki can be very crafty," the snake sanin intervened one of his shinobi.

"Where is Sasuke-kun?" Orochimaru asked as Kabuto adjusted his glasses.

"Should be here very soon. Though he did not seemed amused at the thought of meeting his, what he calls- 'fake revived mother'," the silver haired ninja replied with a smirk.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Just Inside Dialong's Mouth<strong>

* * *

><p>Naruto materialized via water shunshin as he now faced Mikoto's back, the duo standing on what was probably the reptile's tongue.<p>

"Miko-"

"Naruto-kun, I'm begging you... please let me go," the blonde's eyes widened upon hearing the Uchiha's desperate request, her voice quivering a bit.

Taking a deep breath, he released it with a jerk as the jinchuriki averted his gaze sideways for a moment.

"Look, I'm not letting you go with Orochimaru, that option... no, that is not an option at all. We're going down there and I'm going to give you a meeting with Sasuke as promised. You have to trust me on this and let me come with you, I know what I'm doing," his expression dead serious while her shoulders seemed to be shaking a bit as she shook her head.

"N-Naruto, if something happens to you...I won't be able to forgive myself. Nor will Kushina ever forgive me," Mikoto spoke when the blonde stomped his right foot, a look of frustration on his face.

"It's my life Mikoto-chan and solely me, myself is held accountable for any and all choices that I make. I've already made up my mind. So are we going to just stand here and waste our time talking? Sasuke is down there, you won't get this opportunity again," he said loudly as she wiped her eyes, nodding reluctantly with him.

"But please be careful Naruto-kun, you're just as precious to me as Itachi-kun and Sasuke-kun are," the black haired kunoichi's voice soft making Naruto's eyes widen in surprise, a surge of warmth flooding his entire system as he nodded.

"Of course."

* * *

><p><span><strong>Outside: Valley of the End<strong>

* * *

><p>"Why am I called here Orochimaru?" Sasuke spoke in his cold voice, his face expressionless as he stood beside Kabuto, behind the snake sanin- who chuckled to himself in amusement.<p>

"Patience Sasuke-kun, you're about to meet someone very interesting," the young Uchiha narrowed his eyes, standing in his typical Oto wear, his right hand resting casually on the hilt of his katana.

It was still pouring heavily as everyone, on Orochimaru's orders stood still, silently waiting- still gazing at the floating, unreachable dragon in mid-air.

Following Kabuto's gaze, Sasuke's eyes widened upon noticing a huge brown serpentine dragon amongst the clouds.

He narrowed his eyes- instantly recognizing whose summon it was.

"Two huge chakra signatures approaching from above!" Orochimaru's smile widened upon hearing their chakra sensor.

"GET READY EVERYONE! TWO OF THEM COMING!" Kabuto yelled as everyone standing on the lake down there took out their kunai.

"Hey heads up! We need to be on our guard against that kyuubi jinchuriki!" one of the sound shinobi exclaimed as they now could see a lone tiny figure descending towards them.

"Here they come!"

"Where's the other one?!"

One of them noticed when...

**POOF!**

A _huge_ cloud of smoke erupted from in mid-air while Naruto 'swoosh-ed' his way through it at blurry speeds.

The sound shinobi collectively began to go through different sets of hand seals at a fast pace.

"**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!** (**Water Release: Water Dragon Projectile Technique)**"

Dozens of them shouted as the water beneath their feet began to quickly take shape while...

"**Suiton: Nejire Hashira!** (**Water Release: Twisting Pillars)**"

Another dozen or two ninja shouted alike as their jutsu quickly took shape, forming huge pillars of water as they blasted through towards Naruto along with the water dragons.

The jinchuriki however remain unfazed in the face of the large scale attack, it was as if a wave of Tsunami itself was rocketing towards him.

Having gone through a large set of hand seals, his eyes were closed in concentration as he built up large amounts of chakra- no attack less than an S-rank was going to be effective against this many shinobi!

Opening his eyes with a snap, his glowing Rinnegan blazed with chakra- his hair and trench coat ruffling wildly due to his free fall.

"**Ranton: Zoufukufuu Boufuusetsu! **(Storm Release: Amplifying Wind Blizzard)" he yelled as the wind around him began to rotate at high velocity- it was more like a twister, packed with thousands of lightning streaks- surrounding the blonde's falling body all the way being connected to the water surface of the lake below.

"Shit!"

One of the sound shinobi cursed in pain as the electric current in the storm tornado had blocked their water attacks, instead giving them a jolt of lightning release.

SPLASH!

His attack died down quickly as the jinchuriki dived straight into the lake while the Oto shinobi were recovering from being electrocuted a bit- the tornado having caused some small scale tidal waves.

"Where is he!?"

"What the HELL was that attack!?"

"That was storm release, STAY ALERT! The jinchuriki is very skilled, don't take him lightly!"

"O-Oi! There's another dragon up there," everyone snapped their heads up, their eyes widening upon noticing a dark blue dragon hundred meters or so above them. Two glowing yellow bolts were present on each of its large wings, its scales pale yellow while its eyes were a light shade of yellow, black slits staring at hundreds of ninja beneath it.

"**Hey there pests, ready for a crash course on lightning?**"-it was Tianlong, lightning streaks crackling around its body while some of the Oto shinobi winced upon feeling those electric-charged water droplets fall on them.

"What the fuck is that...thing?" one of the Oto shinobi gulped, their eyes wide as they stared at the huge dragon above them.

Meanwhile, Naruto was floating deep underwater- several meters beneath the standing Oto shinobi. His hands coming together into the familiar criss-cross sign, he built up large amounts of chakra before summoning hundreds of shadow clones under water.

All of them put their hands forward, their palms facing the sound ninja up there as they again built chakra, this time the amount being _massive_ instead of just 'large'.

_'I hope this doesn't put much strain on my body, have never used it on such a scale...'_ the original Naruto thought, his spiky bangs floating underwater as if weightless.

All of their bodies began to glow a bit white due to the excessive chakra-

_'Tajuu...'_

...their outstretched hands shaking a bit when they released all that chakra in an instant into a technique which was now becoming Naruto's personal favourite-

'_**SHINRA TENSEI!**_'

In the next second, Kabuto, Sasuke as well as all the Oto ninja up there gaped when terrifying amounts of water along with MOST of the ninja standing on the lake's surface came flying into their view, rocketing upwards as if they were hit from a kyuubi sized uppercut-their collective screams could be heard half a mile away from the Valley of the End.

Witnessing the titanic scene in front of him, his eyes wide, Sasuke had no chance when a soft hand slipped from behind over his mouth- Kabuto and others momentarily distracted from the scene in front of them.

Noticing hundreds of those little pests being flung into the air towards him like... the pests they were, you could've thought the laidback lightning dragon was grinning from ear to ear.

Extending its head down, Tianlong opened its large mouth when thousands of lightning bolts were fired towards the airborne shinobi.

_'Shit! He gets stronger every time we meet him,'_ Kabuto thought as he shielded his eyes with his right hand due to the intensity of lightning- the now heavily injured hundreds of ninja falling back into the lake.

Looking down, he scowled as the blonde jumped out of water to land on its surface, the bodies of the injured shinobi lying around him.

_'Just like that, he got rid of about half of our forces...around three hundred…just like that. He's really dangerous...,'_ a deep scowl on his face. He looked up to notice the rest of the shinobi who were standing on the cliff side, now dashing towards Naruto.

"Hah...damn...hah...hah...," Naruto slid to his left knee, his one eye closed as he panted heavily.

_"Naruto-kun?"_

Hearing Ayumi's concerned voice, he looked back to notice the remaining forces taking a wild dash towards him.

"You won't get away with this bastard!"

"GET THIS SCUM! THOSE WERE OUR COMRADES YOU JUST KILLED!"

"I didn't kill...them...idiots," the blonde wheezed out as he stood on shaky knees.

_"NARUTO! Listen to me here, what happened? Why are you exhausted all of a sudden?! Wait, I'm pouring out some of my chakra to you!"_

_"Isn't it obvious, I used Shinra Tensei on a massive scale, kinda expected that... it did get the job done though," _he answered, his features getting feral as Ayumi's chakra began to fill his chakra coils.

Despite the fact that about three hundred shinobi were nearing him from behind, he looked up calmly as the rain drops now fell on his face- noticing Tianlong had dispelled itself while Dialong was probably on its way to Konoha.

_"I need you to loosen the seal Ayumi-chan. I'm going to be killed otherwise,"_ he muttered inwardly, surprising the bijuu. However, the moment her brain registered the word 'killed', she sprang into action- there was no way in _HELL_ she was going to allow that.

By now his body was covered in a light sheen of red chakra- his breathing rate coming back to normal. Just when he was about to turn around-

SPLASH!

Orochimaru's snake-like body burst out of water in a blur, his mouth stretching large enough to partially engulf Naruto's head tightly, his two razor sharp teeth at the corners digging into the blonde's shoulder.

"Y-You bastard!" the jinchuriki gritted his teeth, unable to move as one of his arms were pinned by his side.

_"Hang on! I've loosened it! Pouring out more chakra!"_ Ayumi said frantically.

Naruto's eyes however widened in shock when another Orochimaru appeared out from deep inside his own mouth, his body wet with fluids as he slithered near the blonde, a crazed smirk on his face.

Both of his hands stretched out blurrily towards his eyes- the Rinnegan, when the jinchuriki grabbed his left hand, the blonde's right hand trapped by his side.

Orochimaru chuckled with a wild gleam in his eyes, his right hand just in front of Naruto's right eye- now wide open in what seemed to be fear.

"But what about your right eye Naruto-kun?"

* * *

><p><span><strong>Konohagakure: Hokage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>"I know Kaa-san, but please try to-" Kushina stopped midway, her eyes widening as she looked back, through the window outside.<p>

"What happened?" Tsunade asked, a perplexed look on her face, sitting across the red head.

"I-... nothing," Kushina replied, staring outside as a group of birds flew by, her hand resting over her heart.

"Is it about Naru-chan?" the slug sanin inquired making the godaime hokage look at her in surprise. Tsunade shrugged with a small smile.

"Only he makes you do weird things these days," she spoke teasingly making the red head flush as she turned her head away to hide her embarrassment. The sanin still didn't know of her true relationship with Naruto after all.

"So, what was it you felt just now, mother's intuition?" the blonde asked while Kushina nodded, expression now that of concern.

"I...really worry about him, he can be really reckless sometimes," she whispered to herself, gazing at the grey cloudy sky.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Valley of The End<strong>

* * *

><p>"ARGHHH!" Naruto screamed in pain, blood dripping down his right closed eyelid while Orochimaru had a smirk on his face, holding the blonde's right eye in his hand.<p>

_"__**NARUTO**__!"_ Ayumi yelled in alarm, her voice now demonic due to her increasing chakra which was seeping out of the loosened seal.

"I'd say your one eye was enough for me, but let's take the other eye too shall we?"

Glaring with his left eye ferociously at the sanin in front of him, the cloak of chakra around him was much denser now as it began to melt the skin of the sanin's previous body's elongated mouth which had engulfed his head.

Orochimaru saw right back into the blonde's left eye, still smiling even though his left hand- which was held by Naruto's left hand- was now melting due to the demonic chakra.

"**You bastard!**" Naruto growled, his fangs elongated, whiskers deepened while his nails pierced into the left wrist of Orochimaru.

"**You won't get away with this!**"

His left Rinnegan was deactivated now- crimson red now with a black slit.

"You truly are...an intriguing child Naruto-kun," the snake sanin chuckled as the Oto shinobi had now surrounded the duo, waiting for Orochimaru to be done with the jinchuriki.

"_**WHAAARGHHHH!**_"

Kabuto's eyes widened when a strong wave of demonic chakra emerged from Naruto, _blasting_ away Orochimaru along with most of the forces surrounding them.

A deep crater formed under the blonde, three tails of chakra waving behind him as he gave a primal growl.

"W-What crazy chakra!" one sound shinobi coughed to himself as he stood shakily, a thin trail of blood seeping down his chin. The others too slowly made it to the surface of the lake, the wind now having been picked up due to the jichuriki's wild chakra.

"Shit! STAY AWAY FROM HIM! SWITCH TO LONG RANGE ATTACKS!" one of them yelled as the others stared at the bubbling crimson form in front of them in what seemed to be fear.

The crater further deepened under Naruto due to the enormous pressure as the red chakra became denser, the blonde's body now becoming crimson red itself as his blood began to boil- his skin having been peeled off.

The others surrounding him narrowed their eyes as they watched another tail- a fourth tail sprout from behind him.

"_**Na-Naruto, you have….to…I'm losing….control…of myself**__," _Ayumi spoke, her voice getting heavier and demonic- the blonde's mindscape now reverting back to the sewer.

"**HNNARRRRRGHHHHH!**" Naruto screamed demonically, chakra rotating around him wildly as another tail came into existence when several huge rotating pillars of water came flying towards him from the sound ninja around him.

The jinchuriki just stood as the pillars flooded his little form completely, colliding him with a thunderous impact while it continued to rain.

"He really is something isn't he?" Kabuto looked back as Orochimaru slithered out from the ground, a jar in his hands. The silver haired medic's eyes widened when he noticed the eye floating in the jar full with a greenish transparent liquid.

"Is that…?"

"Of course," the sanin replied, a smile on his face when Kabuto looked around in confusion.

"Wait, where's….?"

"Mikoto-chan must have gotten him, it's okay. We've gotten what we came for," Orochimaru chuckled as he shook the jar a bit for emphasis. Eyeing the lone eye, he looked back at his master.

"Are you sure, he is an Uchiha after all," Kabuto inquired making the snake sanin shrug.

"Sasuke-kun will not go back, that I'm sure of. And if he can kill Mikoto-chan for us, all the more better for us. She's not going to attack her son after all."

"He's getting out of control," the sanin noticed, his countenance now grim as he looked down. Kabuto turned back to notice the jinchuriki going on a rampage, blurrily slithering through his enemies- killing them brutally without any restraint, six tails waving behind him wildly as now a skeletal structure was covering his crimson form.

"It won't be long before the Akatsuki notices this. I've heard Itachi and Kisame were patrolling the areas around Konoha- waiting for a chance like this," the medic spoke as he adjusted his glasses.

"That's what I want, we can't let that pest live for long- he'll pose problems for me in the future. The sooner the Akatsuki eliminates him, the better," Orochimaru uttered as he turned back, now walking away.

"I'm going, come back when all of this is over. I want full report of what happens here today," Kabuto focused back on the scene below, his eyebrows lifting in surprise as he witnessed a huge ball of pure chakra just above Naruto's open mouth- slowly compressing itself till the transformed blonde engulfed it.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Outskirts of Kumogakure: Killer Bee's Home<strong>

* * *

><p>"BEE!" Yugito yelled as she dashed up the stairs towards the white haired shinobi's house.<p>

Jumping over the final few steps, just as she was about to reach for the door- it opened as the eight tailed jinchuriki came out, all his gear in place along with his seven swords.

"I know bakayaro! Konayaro!" he rapped in his usual tone while Yugao panted to regain her breath, adjusting the strap of her backpack as she nodded with him.

"We don't have time to inform Raikage-sama! The location is near Konoha though," she spoke in an urgent tone as red chakra began to seep out of her body.

"If we hope to reach Naruto! We have to go full speed-O!" their forms now covered by a red cloak of chakra as they took off at blinding speeds.

"This is bad, I can't believe this! Nibi says he's already on eight tails! Did his seal break!?" the blonde uttered, her eyes narrowed as they traversed through the dense foliage.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Valley of The End<strong>

* * *

><p>"RETREAT! RETREAT! GET AWAY FROM IT!"<p>

The remaining hundred or so Oto shinobi began to dash back towards Madara's statue, away from the huge monstrosity behind them.

Kabuto stared with interest as the now transformed- eight tailed form of Naruto was thrashing wilding at everything around it. It's body now as large as the kyuubi's original one, covered with muscles and tendons.

'_Just like that…but how did his seal break? Or did he intentionally loosened it to fight us? Doesn't this kid realize he's going to die very soon like this?' _the medic thought.

The water just around the jinchuriki was all dried up, constantly evaporating due to the high temperature of his demonic chakra while the remaining water was swirling around him like a tornado- hundreds of corpses around him being flung away like flies.

"_**RWAAAARRRRRRRR!**_"

* * *

><p><span><strong>Naruto's Mindscape<strong>

* * *

><p>The jinchuriki could be found kneeling in front of the huge metallic cage in front of him, clutching his head tightly as he gritted his teeth in exertion.<p>

Inside the darkness of the cage, Ayumi was thrashing wildly- already in her bijuu form as she had lost control of herself a while back. The seal on the blonde's stomach was now dissolving into black liquid, falling down to mix with the water below.

His right eye closed, a thin trail of blood having seeped out of it due to his lost eye while he panted in exertion.

"Sh-Shit!" he cursed, no longer in control of his body. This was not supposed to happen, he wasn't going to go this far. But the sudden influx of negative, demonic chakra had such a monstrous impact that it didn't take long for both him, as well as Ayumi to lose control.

Although the seal was loosened a little bit, but due to his rage at Orochimaru- it had opened the floodgates.

And within a matter of minutes, the seal was on the verge of dissolving completely now. Naruto didn't know if setting Ayumi free, the way she was now, was a good idea or not. It was clear she won't refrain from killing even him like this.

The whiskered blonde gripped his head tighter upon hearing Ayumi's constant demonic howls from inside the weakening cage.

"S-Stop…it…Ayumi-chan," he muttered, his eyes closed as the cage began to crack.

"Ayumi-chan can't listen to you now, not when she's like this," feeling a warm, soft hand on his left shoulder, Naruto's lone eye snapped wide open as he turned his head.

Standing just behind him was a beautiful young woman of slender build, wearing a kimono with her red hair arranged into two buns with hair pins and three pins in front- two seal tags with respective kanji hanging from in her hair decals. Her pretty face was adorned with soft features, violet diamond mark on her forehead, her supple lips coated with red lipstick while her pupil-less orbs gazed at Ayumi.

Yes, this was a woman he had seen before, Kushina had shown him her photo many times.

The red haired woman turned to him, her face softening into a smile as she squeezed his shoulder gently.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Uzumaki Naruto."

The blonde gaped, his lone eye wide while she continued to smile at him.

"U-Uzumaki Mito…"

* * *

><p><strong>Well, each reader interprets a story in their own different ways, and they take different things from it. So some of you will like it, some of you will not. Thus I will not explain anything as to what happened, why it happened and why I'm taking the story in a certain direction which all of you will predict differently. So I leave that up to you and ask you to wait patiently and not jump to conclusions.<strong>

**Also, many a thanks to the readers who reviewed in my absence, kept me reminding that people are still reading my stories lol (XD). But seriously, I do read each and every review. It might seem to you as if the author doesn't care about your review, but I do care! And I do read all of them, again and again! Of course I can't reply to all of you due to so many, but I do read ALL of them! **

**Anyway, I will update my other stories- just like I used to. I don't know when I'll update, but I'll try my best to update as soon as I can. **

**So thank you for reading. Love you all! ^_^**

**N6023**


	54. Reunions

**Chapter 54- Reunions**

* * *

><p><em>Yes, this was a woman he had seen before, Kushina had shown him her photo many times.<em>

_The red haired woman turned to him, her face softening into a smile as she squeezed his shoulder gently._

"_It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Uzumaki Naruto."_

_The blonde gaped, his lone eye wide while she continued to smile at him._

"_U-Uzumaki Mito…"_

Her smile widened while Naruto continued to pant.

"Oh, it seems you know me. I never saw myself as the famous type or anything," she spoke gently while the blonde tried to stand up. Moving around him, she helped him stand as he staggered to his feet.

"Let's go somewhere else, we don't have much time. I sense another chakra signature wanting to meet you," she said, her expression becoming serious before looking over her shoulder towards Ayumi.

"Another chakra signature…?" the jinchuriki asked, a perplexed look on his face as she put her right hand on his stomach, from where the seal was dissolving into a black liquid steadily.

Mito's eyebrows rose in what seemed to be momentary surprise as his mindscape changed from the sewer- the duo standing in a three-dimensional empty white space now.

"Wow, this seal is quite the upgraded version as compared to the seal I used on myself. If I had to say…this must be the work of Kushina-chan," Naruto watched as her hand glowed green for a second when the seal on his stomach stopped dissolving.

"There, this should hold you up for a while," her smile radiant as she looked into his eyes. Naruto just averted his gaze, his cheeks lighting in an embarrassed flush.

His eye was downcast as he noticed his limited field of vision- he had lost his right eye, the Rinnegan- and that too to none other than Orochimaru.

Great, things were just looking great for him.

'_But oh well, at least it gave Mikoto-chan enough time to take Sasuke from under their noses,'_ he thought, his expression that of sadness.

Mito continued to observe him, a soft smile on her face while he kept looking at his feet- deep in his thoughts.

"I have to say, I have never seen a blonde Uzumaki. It's kind of weird," she grinned lightly, resting her right hand on her waist as he looked at her- managing a weak smile.

"Did I die?" her grin turned into a warm smile as she shook her head.

"No, you're not dead. You did promise others that you were not going to die didn't you?" she winked while he looked down, his shoulders slumped.

"Does it…matter now? To them I might as well be dead now. I lost my right Rinnegan…" he whispered, a faint chuckle escaping his lips as he shrugged lightly to himself.

"I can just imagine everyone's reactions…the lecture Kaa-san is going to give me…yeah, might as well not go back," the blonde muttered as he looked up to see her frowning at him.

"This…is not the Uzumaki Naruto I knew," Mito spoke, looking straight into his lone oceanic pool- which widened for a second as his expression grew bitter.

"Yeah, I guess I changed for the worse. Don't know when, it just happened over time. Maybe the burden was too great for me," he sighed as she stepped forward- waving her hand slowly in mid-air in front of the blonde's face.

"Where is that abundant positive energy that always surrounded you? Your chakra has lost its warmth. There's so much negativity emanating off of you that it's suffocating. Where is…Naruto?" she asked, her expression solemn. The jinchuriki just turned his head away from her, his eye closed- an expression of pain on his face.

"I…don't know," he choked out, gritting his teeth as she rested her hand on his right shoulder.

"If I had to pin-point two things you're feeling right now above all else- it would be hurt and frustration, mix anger in t-"

"_BECAUSE I AM FRUSTRATED!_" Naruto screamed as he slapped her hand away- his lone eye wide open with teardrops flying off in random directions.

"I am so fucking frustrated at this world! At EVERYONE! This is just not fair! Nothing's been fair so far! Everything is so fucked up! I never asked for this seal! I never asked for the Rinnegan! These were not my choices! People fucking expect so much from me without even considering what I'm going through! Lecturing me always! This! That! Naruto-kun you should do this! Naruto-kun don't do that! Well why won't you just leave 'Naruto-kun' the fuck alone and LET NARUTO-KUN MAKE DECISIONS FOR HIMSELF! FUCKING 'NARUTO-KUN' HAS BEEN LIVING ALONE AND MANAGING ON HIS OWN JUST FUCKING FINE SINCE HE WAS BORN! NO MATTER WHAT I DO IT'S ALWAYS 'NARUTO-KUN'S' FAULT RIGHT?! I ABSOLUTELY HATE HATE HATE HATE _HATE _THIS WORLD! I ABSOLUTELY FUCKING LOATHE IT! GODDAMMIT THIS IS ALL SO FUCKED UP DATTEBAYO!"

'_pant'_

'_pant'_

…

Mito just blinked several times as Naruto glared at her, panting harshly before his legs gave up- the blonde falling on his butt.

"O-Oh my…" she choked out before the redhead burst out giggling loudly making the jinchuriki frown at her.

"What's so funny! I didn't crack a joke!" he yelled in anger as she held her stomach, waving her other hand in a 'no offence' motion. She too slowly sat on her toes, just in front of the blonde who was glaring at her- the redhead's laughter now slowly dying out.

"Get out!" Naruto was seething now as he glared while she just smiled at him- making him avert his gaze as he huffed in frustration.

"Fine then, I guess I'll just go and take care of things out th-"

Just as he was about to stand up, Mito leaned forward to take him into a warm hug- wrapping her arms around his head.

"I guess you needed to let all that out didn't you Naruto?" she whispered, his lone eye wide before they narrowed.

"Let me…go," the blonde tried to push her off but she just didn't budge, holding on to him tightly.

"Naruto, it's okay. I understand what you're going through," Mito spoke gently while he slowly stopped struggling, tears streaming down his lone eye.

"How old are you Naruto?" she asked, her warm and gentle voice soothing him as she applied her green chakra to him- comforting him.

"I…I don't know, fourteen maybe," his voice croaked. Mito gently rubbed his back, holding the back of his head with the other hand- her eyes closed as she hummed to herself.

"You are still quite young, there's so much in life you still have to see. The world is cruel yes, but it's still so much beautiful too. I know you've been through a lot at such a young age, and that's why you are special. People who have to bear extra difficulties in their life as compared to others are truly special people, because those difficulties are preparing you for something big in the future- something really beautiful and decisive," she paused, her eyes still closed while the blonde just stayed quiet.

"Hope, you have to have hope. You can never lose hope Naruto. I know you believe in yourself, but equally important is having faith in the world too- that things will turn for the better someday. You can't blame your loved ones too. You always wanted someone to be there when you were little didn't you? Don't be angry at your loved ones just because they care for you. You can be reckless sometimes and they don't want to lose you, which leads them to sometimes take desperate measures. It may frustrate you, but don't say hurtful things to them in your anger. You never know how much you can hurt people with just your words. Misunderstandings can happen, and unintentionally hurting your loved one can happen, and that's part of being close to someone isn't it?" Mito smiled as Naruto nodded, still quiet.

"Well, I want you to replay…replay all the beautiful things that have happened in your life so far. The number of those events may be small, but I'm sure you know best how important they were to you."

Naruto closed his eyes as he took a deep breath- he was strangely, suddenly feeling at peace- a feeling that had become quite foreign to him the last couple of days, even when his own chakra was supposed to calm him down.

He remembered it all- right from the first time he had met Anko, Kurenai, Hana and Yugao in their disguised forms, then Mikoto, then Iruka at the academy. Of course, Hiruzen was always there for him since he was born. Then team seven was formed. He had met Kakashi and Sakura. Sasuke was more of a rival for him, but they were on good terms.

And then finally that day, the day that changed his life drastically. The day he got the Rinnegan in the Forest of Death, the day he met Itachi and Kisame. Those two minutes of Tsukiyomi training were probably the most important two minutes of his life. He remembered meeting a naked Ayumi the first time, and connecting with Hinata later. He remembered Kurenai showing him how his beautiful mother looked like- and to this day that was an image he still remembered quite vividly.

Then the golden moment where he finally met Kushina, and the instant attraction he had felt towards her. Him making tons of friends after that, helping save the village, saving Hiruzen, resurrecting Mikoto- those were some good moments. Then the fresh feeling of something new he felt when he achieved the second level of Rinnegan.

Yes, good memories, they soon brought a smile to his face as Mito and the jinchuriki stayed still.

"So, aren't they beautiful?" Mito asked gently as he slowly opened his eyes, a sad smile on his face.

"They are, they…really are, I really cherish them. But you know…" he trailed, averting his eye as his lips tugged down.

"…the bad memories far outweigh the good ones. But still, I can't help but smile when I recall those moments."

Mito leaned back slowly as she offered the young blonde a warm smile.

"That's right, since the bad outweighs the good right now…you've got a good reason to look forward to the good ones in the future. I'm sure they're gonna come soon. But they will only come if you continue to hang in there through the tough times. If you lose yourself, and give in to the negativity, there's nothing left but darkness for you," Naruto stared at her as she cupped his whiskered cheek.

"The reason I came here, is just to tell you that you've done a remarkable job so far given the burden you've been carrying since you were born. You are an amazing child Naruto, an amazingly special child. So sometimes it's okay to cry, sometimes it's okay to be stupid, and sometimes it's okay to make mistakes. But the most important reason your loved ones love you…" she held her index finger up before touching the tip of his nose lightly, making him blink.

"…is because you are Uzumaki Naruto. So make sure that through all of this, you don't change. Just stay as you are. I already told this to Kushina-chan once- to counter the hatred of a bijuu, you have to fill yourself with love…you have to love yourself first. And for you Naruto, to counter the world's hatred, all its frustrations, pain and sadness…you have to fill those around you with love," Mito finished as she kissed his forehead before leaning back, giggling as the blonde's cheeks reddened.

"So…do you feel better now? Three minutes earlier I met you, you looked like a volcano waiting to be erupted," she grinned lightly making him smile as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

"It's strange, talking to you makes me feel as if I'm talking to myself. I can so imagine myself saying all those things to someone else, but hearing them for once really gave me an awesome feeling I just can't describe'ttebayo," he grinned with his lone eye closed making her giggle lightly as she covered her mouth.

"You are really cute with those whiskers and that verbal tick," Mito pinched his cheek making him smile.

"So how did you manage to pop out here?" Naruto asked making her shrug.

"I had sealed some of my chakra into Ayumi just for the purpose of seeing any future jinchuriki after Kushina. Being a jinchuriki is not an easy path, and I'm sure I could help them when they were on the verge of breaking down," this made the blonde smile hesitantly as he looked down.

Well, he was about to break, and losing his eye was the last straw.

Sensing his mood, Mito held his chin as she gently made him look at her.

"Don't be sad, everyone needs to be held once in a while, no matter how strong they are. I'm just glad I could help you. It made me feel like I filled you with love today," a bright smile on her face, her eyes closed while the whiskered blonde blushed lightly- yeah, this woman could say the most embarrassing things way too easily.

A sigh escaped his lips as he smiled back at her, looking at her through his lone eye.

"Yeah, but that doesn't change the fact that I lost my eye. That bastard was waiting all along for me to let my guard down," his expression bitter as he clenched the fabric of his violet shinobi pants on his thigh.

"As I said, whatever happens…happens for the better. You lost an eye, and maybe that happened for a bigger and a better reason. You never know, you're only living in the present after all…no one knows what the future holds. So stop worrying about it," the red head stood up as her body began to glow.

"What's happening?" Naruto asked as he stood while she just smiled at him.

"Well, my time's up…that's as much as I can afford this time. I have to save some for the next jinchuriki too. Tell Kushina-chan and Ayumi-chan that I love them," Mito stepped forward as she hugged him again.

"And I need you to know that I love you too Naruto. Thank you for protecting Konoha all this time. And no matter what anyone else says, you are a truly special and a brave child. So keep your chin up, and live your life the way you always dreamed of when you were little…sayonara," her last word was barely audible as she vanished completely, the blonde standing still- still feeling her warmth covering him.

He just didn't know how to describe what had took place the past five minutes or so- out of nowhere she had come, and had changed his perspective on several things in a matter of minutes.

Mito Uzumaki…she was truly something else; there was this dignified air around her, but she could completely make you feel at ease with her gentle and warm personality.

He looked at his hand, smiling to himself as he wiped his left eye- 'kinda' feeling fresh right then.

'_Alright, time to go and take back what's rightfully mine!'_ he thought with a narrowed eye as the blonde clenched his fists.

"Naruto?"

The jinchuriki whipped his head back, his eye widening as he suddenly remembered Mito saying 'another chakra signature'.

"T-Tou-san?"

* * *

><p><span><strong>A Little Far from Valley of The End: Forests<strong>

* * *

><p>Sasuke groaned as his eyes fluttered open- trees soaring towards the pouring sky coming into his view while he blinked a few times to adjust his blurry vision.<p>

Bolting upright, he fought a wave of dizziness as the Uchiha clenched his eyes shut for a few seconds.

"Easy there Sasuke-kun, you don't need to panic…" he snapped his eyes open upon hearing a familiar voice- turning his head to notice Mikoto standing on a nearby branch.

"K-Kaa-san…" Sasuke stuttered upon seeing her, she looked so…just like he remembered her. Not by a day did she look older as she smiled hesitantly at him.

"Sasuke-kun, I know you'll probably refuse to accept me, and I know you want to kill Itachi-kun for what happened that night…but I'm alive now," she took a deep breath while Sasuke just blinked, still coming out of his shock. He knew that his mother had been revived…still, standing in front of her, she really looked like his mother. It didn't look like she ever died at all.

"As your mo-"

"A-Are you really…my mom?" he asked, now standing on his feet, a look of anxiousness on his face. Mikoto smiled warmly at him as she put a hand on her heart.

"Of course I am," she replied, her eyes full of warmth as she gazed at her son. She had just sat for a few minutes just watching him, taking in all of his features, noticing how much her baby boy had grown.

And yet, still praying that Naruto was alright. He had so stubbornly asked her to put her faith in him and just meet Sasuke, it was in the spur of the moment- while falling down from the sky that she had to take a split second decision to meet her son. She most probably wouldn't have gotten a second chance to meet him.

"Then, if you are my mom…then, how do you view Itachi? How do you view him?" Sasuke asked, a serious expression on his face while his hand stealthily reached the hilt of his katana. This didn't go past Mikoto's eyes as she picked up the subtle movement.

"Both of you are my sons, and no matter what you do…I'll always love you," a smile on her face making Sasuke's eyes widen before they narrowed, his face morphing into a deep scowl.

"That's all? That's what you have to say in his defence for what he did?! Did you forget he killed all our members, everyone?! He even killed you and Tou-san! What kind of a twisted sick bastard kills his own parents!" he was yelling by the end, glaring at Mikoto as she looked down in sadness.

"That's true, it all seems weird doesn't it? Your big brother was always a level headed one, he grew up during the war time. He hated wars. Itachi-kun loved peace. So, even though all facts go against him, I'm his mother. I knew him, and I trust him for the decisions he made. He must have had his reasons. Don't be so quick t-"

"You…are not serious right?" Sasuke asked calmly, his eyes wide as he looked at her while she regarded him with a stoic countenance.

"I am completely serious. Don't be quick to judge Itachi-kun. There are several things we might not know. Itachi-kun has always been deceptive and clever. Besides, did you know that our clan was scheming against the sandaime hokage, against Konoha?" by now Sasuke was seething, his clenched fists trembling as he glared at Mikoto.

"Cut your bullshit! Even if what you're saying is true…that's the solution?!" he growled, his voice shaking in anger- his Sharingan staring into her eyes.

"You kill the whole clan?! IS THAT WHAT THE SOLUTION ITACHI HIMSELF CAME UP WITH?! WHY DIDN'T HE KILL ME TOO THEN HUH?! WHY TORTURE ME?!" he screamed at her as she stared back at him, a melancholic look in her eyes.

'_Itachi-kun, what did you do to him…he's still traumatized.'_

"He spared only you…because he loved you, more than us, more than anything in t-"

She stopped mid-sentence when Sasuke began to chuckle darkly before glaring hatefully at her.

"You know what, ! I'm throu-"

_THHWAP!_

The sound of a resounding smack echoed throughout the area as now Mikoto stood in front of Sasuke- having slapped her son as he wobbled back a bit to regain his footing. The Uchiha matriarch had a deep scowl on her face, her eyes watery while her hand leaned back to her side.

"I'm done talking Sasuke-kun. You're coming back with me- back to Konoha. You'll get rid of that ridiculous ambition of yours to kill Itachi, and I'll force you if I have to," her voice stern as she fixed a glare onto the young Uchiha.

Inside though she was hurting, it pained her to see Sasuke like this- to hear him talk like that to her.

"You…" Sasuke growled as he turned his head back to glower at her.

"…are not my mother! My mother was dead years ago, and she was killed by my brother! My whole clan was wiped out in a single night by that brother! And I was tortured, and asked to hate him, to come after him! That's exactly what I will do! NO ONE'S going to stop me!" he unsheathed his katana in a blur, pointing it at her.

Mikoto averted her gaze, her expression softening as a tear slipped down her cheek. Wiping her cheek, she looked at him with cold eyes- her fully matured Sharingan now staring back at him.

"Who said that your brother was the one who killed me?" she asked calmly making her son's eyes widen. Just as he was about to speak, she interrupted him.

"You can say whatever you want, but the fact still remains that I'm your mother. And it's my duty that I stop you. You're so lost in your revenge that you don't see anything else at all…starting today, I'm going to put you back on track. And then, I'm going to settle this with Itachi-kun too," she spoke resolutely.

"I'm not going anywhere, this is the path I chose willingly. You are just a pale imitation of my mother, just a fake revival," Sasuke spoke, a smirk on his face while Mikoto's eyes widened as black curse marks began to spread on his skin.

"Sasuke-kun, what…happened to you?" she asked in surprise when the young Uchiha frowned at her, the three tomoes in his Sharingan spinning.

Firing chakra to his feet, he leapt towards her- creating a crater in the wood of the branch- his katana charged with lightning streaks. Mikoto however just sighed, closing her eyes.

"I will never accept you as my mother!" Sasuke growled as he brought down his katana towards her head in a blur. His eyes however widened when within the blink of an eye, she had vanished- his katana slicing through a leaf in mid-air.

He landed as the two pieces of the mentioned leaf floated away with the slight gust of wind. Looking around with a confused expression, he snapped his head upon noticing something through his peripheral vision.

'_How did she…it definitely wasn't shunshin no jutsu!'_ Sasuke gaped, staring at Mikoto who was standing on the branch where he was a few seconds ago.

"How did you…" he trailed, narrowing his eyes.

'_It couldn't be pure speed! My Sharingan didn't catch anything!'_ he thought, clutching his katana tightly.

"This is useless Sasuke-kun…" Mikoto whispered in his left ear.

This time the world around him slowed down as now his mother was standing just behind him, her right hand on his shoulder with her other hand resting gently on his head. His eyes were widened, also noticing that he longer had the katana in his hand- further increasing his shock.

'_What…is this?'_ he was having difficulty in comprehending what had happened just now.

"I had temporary stopped taking missions so I could take care of you when you were little. So of course you never saw me in action. Your mother wasn't just an average housewife Sasuke-kun," her voice soft while the raven haired Uchiha just stood still, rooted to his spot when he noticed his katana lying exactly where Mikoto was standing a moment ago.

His eyes narrowed in recognition.

'_I see…'_

"It's just substitution, what's so special about it?" he muttered before puffing into smoke, shunshin-ing to where his katana was lying.

Mikoto smirked as she put a hand to her waist while her son picked his katana warily.

"Is it? 'Just substitution' huh? Can you do this then?" Sasuke just stared at her, in front of him with a flabbergasted look on his face.

However, there was one glaring difference- Mikoto was standing with his katana in her right hand- an amused smile on her face. Her son gritted his teeth in annoyance as he glared at her.

"My katana, did you teleport it?" his frustration was evident, his Sharingan wasn't picking up on anything!

Mikoto smirked as she pointed the blue-ish blade of the katana at him.

"Really? I didn't do anything to your katana? It is where it was. Why don't you look at where you're standing right now?" Sasuke looked down for him to freeze in shock upon noticing where Mikoto was standing- on the small sized crater he had formed in the beginning.

She had substituted with him! Before, she had substituted with his katana to appear behind him. But this time, she had substituted with him to appear in his place, holding the katana just like he was a few moments ago.

'_Such clean and perfect execution…how is this even possible?'_ the raven haired Uchiha thought, a perplexed look in his eyes while Mikoto's expression turned serious.

"It's futile to resist against me. You're coming with me to Konoha, right now!" her chakra levels rising to kage level while Sasuke took a step back, a doubtful look on his face.

'_I have to get away from her, I can't go back to that place!'_ he growled mentally as the curse mark on the back of his neck began to glow.

More black curse marks began to spread across his skin which slowly turned into dark grey, a black four-point star-mark present between his eyes and across the bridge of his nose. His sclera was now black with his lips having turned blue- hair growing to his waist length. Another noticeable feature was the growth of large webbed hand-shaped wings on his back.

Mikoto was sporting a horrified look on her face, her expression slowly turning from that of shock to anger.

"Did Orochimaru do this to you?" she asked, her voice cold while Sasuke just 'Tch'-ed in response.

"It's none of your concern…go back to Naruto, he might need your help after all. Or maybe he's dead already," he shrugged, flapping his wings to take flight.

Just as Mikoto was about to use her 'kawarimi', her eyebrows rose in shock along with Sasuke's as the younger Uchiha was pushed back onto the surface of the branch- from which he had just taken elevation.

An arm was lazily slung along his neck, over his shoulder.

"No need to be in such a hurry Sasuke-kun…"

Mikoto just stared at the newly arrived figure while Sasuke too found himself looking into another pair of Sharingan. His eyes soon narrowed in hatred and unbridled rage as he gritted his teeth.

"Itachi…"

* * *

><p><span><strong>Valley of The End<strong>

* * *

><p>It was still raining heavily, the area dead silent except the pitter-patter of the downpour. Kabuto was standing on the cliff-side behind Madara's statue, staring at something down on the lake- his visage serious as he adjusted his glasses- his eyes closed.<p>

"Get rid of him for Orochimaru-sama! GO!" he ordered about a hundred or so remaining Oto shinobi standing beside him. All of them raged shouts of war before jumping down, their target- the lone standing figure of Naruto- who seemed to be unconscious.

The blonde's head was dipped down, his eye closed while he stood with his shoulders slumped. He had been in this condition for the past five minutes- apparently he had suddenly transformed from his eight-tailed state- back to how he was now.

Kabuto had no idea what had happened, but this was their opportunity to get rid of the troublesome jinchuriki. And if the kyuubi went on a rampage thereafter, it was Akatsuki's problem to capture the beast then.

"Kill that bastard!"

"He killed most of our comrades!"

The group of sound ninja dashed towards the lone standing jinchuriki- looks of fury on their faces as all of them brandished their kunai.

"Make sure this fucking asshole dies a painful death!"

"We'll torture him to death!"

Several nin threw their kunai as few dozens of projectiles neared Naruto at whizzing speeds.

CLK!

The resounding sound of kunai bouncing off a large ice wall echoed amongst the pitter-patter as the Oto shinobi skid to a halt- their eyes wide.

"Did…did he do it?"

"But he didn't even do any hand seals! No way can someone use ice release without any hand seals!"

All of them stared, clenching their kunai tightly as the wall crumbled down to reveal a hooded figure standing in front of Naruto.

"Sorry to disappoint you folks, but I can," from the voice of the figure, it was clear that it was a 'she'.

"Who are you!?" one of the sound ninja demanded as she just giggled in response.

"I'm just a friend of Uzumaki Naruto here! You guys can attack him when he's awake, but until then, I'm sorry to ruin your fun!" she spoke rather cheerfully when one of them stepped forward.

"Who do you think you are you bitch! Now step aside before I fucking cut off your ni-"

SQUILCH!

"AARGH! W-What the fuck!" one of the others exclaimed in response as a thin ice shard had blurred out from the water below to pierce the guy through the bottom of his jaw- all the way in before bursting out through his skull- large globs of blood splashing on those standing nearby as well as some mixing with the water.

"Now now, that's not the way to talk to a lady is it?" the hooded lady said in an amused tone while some of them gulped, standing still in their places.

'_Who is this? I think I've seen her before…yes, during the invasion! She had interacted with Naruto for a brief time during the invasion. I remember her using ice release,' _Kabuto pondered, narrowing his eyes at the new arrival.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Naruto's Mindscape<strong>

* * *

><p>"And that's how I lost my eye. I'm sorry, I should've been more careful, just didn't expect him to come out crawling from his own mouth though," Naruto muttered, his lone eye looking down when Minato laughed as he put a hand on his head.<p>

"It's okay Naruto, nothing to fret over! With the Uzumaki blood running through your veins, I have no doubt that you would get it back," an encouraging grin on the yondaime's face while the blonde looked at him in surprise, his lips tugging into a smile.

The past ten minutes or so, the father and son had talked about a lot of things- especially what was going on in his life recently and how he had gotten the Rinnegan. Any anger that he felt regarding his childhood was immediately wiped out when Minato had begged him for his forgiveness on his knees. And forgiving someone was something that always came naturally to him.

He had thought on several occasions on what he would do if he were to miraculously meet his father. The jinchuriki had already come to terms with the fact that Minato had to do it for the sake of Konoha- Kushina after all had told the whole story to him. Although his mother detested Minato for sealing Ayumi into Naruto, he couldn't bring himself to do it.

"So, I almost forgot to ask, you told me that Kushina was teleported to the future where you met her a few months ago. Ayumi did that right? So how is Kushina?" the ex-hokage asked making Naruto nod as he smiled at his father.

"She's super awesome as always. And you wouldn't believe who actually succeeded you for the seat of hokage!" he had a wide grin on his face while Minato's eyes widened immediately.

"Oh you've got to be…" the elder blonde trailed in shock making his son snicker to himself.

"Nope! She is the freaking fifth hokage! And somehow, she even has the Sharingan now!" Naruto exclaimed, clearly excited while Minato blinked- clearly stupefied.

"Uh, what?"

"Yeah! And even Mikoto-chan is alive!" he further spoke while his father looked at him in confusion before a look of realization dawned on his face.

"Oh right, you told me the Uchiha clan was massacred in a single night by Uchiha Itachi, her elder son right?" he muttered making the jinchuriki nod seriously.

"A lot of things have happened, but we are managing…doing our best. The whole of Akatsuki is after me, an organisation focusing on capturing all the tailed beasts- consisting of S-rank international criminals. But I've been training seriously under Kaa-san and have gotten really strong," Naruto said with a smile as he flexed his bicep making Minato laugh.

"I have to admit that sometimes I'm under a lot of pressure and do stupid things, but I always try to give my level best! I also unintentionally hurt others sometimes by my actions, but again…I try really really hard not to! It's just that circumstances get too much," he sighed at the end, the blonde clearly anxious to tell a lot of things to his father while Minato just smiled at him as he put his right hand on his head.

"You truly are Kushina's son, a motor mouth just like her," he grinned as Naruto averted his gaze in embarrassment.

"Yeah, I guess so. But Kaa-san really misses you, she always keeps talking about you," he said with his closed-eye smile while Minato looked at him in surprise

"Really? I thought Kushina hated me?" he questioned, now making Naruto look at him in surprise this time.

'_How does he…'_

"What are you saying? Why would she hate you?" he asked, his eye softening as he noticed a brief flash of pain and hurt in Minato's eyes before his father smiled at him hesitantly.

"She was really pissed off at me during the moments I was sealing Ayumi into you. Before dying, I'm sure she hated me with a passion. I don't blame her though, she's a mother. And no mother would want to bestow a fate of a jinchuriki on her child. I could have let her seal Ayumi back in herself and die, saving your childhood in the process. But…" the yondaime hokage averted his gaze as he rubbed the back of his head.

"I wanted you to control Ayumi-chan's powers, I knew you would become a great shinobi someday. That masked man is sure to strike the ninja world again, and at that night, while sealing Ayumi into you…I just came to a realization you were the child of prophecy Naruto. Call me crazy, or maybe I'm just making excuses for my decisions. But I chose the decision that seemed best to me at that moment. Maybe I was wrong, and for that, I'm so-"

"It's okay Tou-san. I told you already! I understand, and I'm serious when I tell you this that Kaa-san really misses you. She doesn't hate you at all! Yeah she was angry at you when she met me, but seeing me alright melted her anger and she regrets making you think that she hated you! She loves you and really misses you!" Naruto kind of yelled in the end, his eyes narrowed while Minato looked at him with wide eyes.

There was no way in hell he was going to reveal to his father his relationship with Kushina. He couldn't do that to Minato. Nor was he going to reveal that how Kushina still hated him. His father didn't deserve that.

"R-Really? I guess…well, I have to say I'm relieved! Haha! Kushina was the love of my life, I never meant to hurt her," at that moment, Naruto's heart constricted in a painful way when he heard Minato say those words.

He just smiled hesitantly while Minato laughed to himself in relief.

"But Naruto, will you do something for me?" he asked with a smile. The jinchuriki shrugged with a light grin.

"Anything!"

"Tell your mother that I really love her. But I want her to move on. Tell her to find someone, someone who makes her happy. I don't want her to stay alone for the rest of her life. She's too beautiful and deserving for that," the whiskered blonde's smile faltered for a second before he composed himself- masking sadness in his eyes.

"Of course, I'll tell her. I keep telling her that but she says she isn't ready to move on. She still misses you a lot ya know," he finished with a soft smile as Minato rubbed the back of his head- a sheepish expression on his face.

"Well I'm flattered but you make sure she finds someone. And make sure you find a beautiful girl too alright?" he winked at the end, elbowing his son playfully.

"Well, I have already repaired the seal back to its original state. Ayumi-chan should be back to normal too," Minato informed as his form started to fade.

"Looks like I'm out of chakra. Be strong Naruto, and remember, I have faith in you. That, and I'm proud of you too for how you've held your own despite everything," his voice now getting hollow while Naruto started to feel something of an itch in the back of his empty eye-socket.

"Yeah, I will remember that. I love you Tou-san," he smiled, waving lightly when Minato's fading form dispersed into small glowing chakra particles.

It was silent now as the blonde sighed to himself, holding his heart as he closed his lone eye.

"That…was hard," he muttered to himself, wiping a single tear from the corner of his left eye.

'_I'm sorry…Tou-san,'_ he said to himself mentally as the itching behind his eyes began to increase.

Opening his lone eye, he was not so surprised to see himself standing back in his sewer mindscape- in front of the large cage.

"Ayumi-chan! Are you alright?" he yelled, rubbing his right eyelid to get rid of the irritation. Not getting any response, he walked closer- kind of intimidated by the silent darkness within the cage when a jolt of pain flashed through his empty eye socket as he slid to his knees.

"Sh-Shit! Now what?!" he exclaimed in frustration, his head bent down- both eyes closed with his right hand over his right eye.

'_Is this…like before during the invasion?'_ he thought, intense pain coursing through his right empty socket while his heart beat began to increase like before during the attack on village.

Was his Rinnegan ascending again?

Did it take him to lose an eye to ascend to the third level this time?!

'_This is weird though…why now all of a sudden?' _his eyes clenched shut, beads of sweat trailing down his skin, mixing with the thin trail of dried up blood from his right eyelid.

* * *

><p><span><strong>Kirigakure: Mizukage's Office<strong>

* * *

><p>"…for the organization. I guess we have to take in consideration of the fact that not many people are fond of us shinobi who possess kekkei genkai. Still, I ho-" Mei Terumi, the fifth mizukage stopped abruptly as she looked at her right palm, her delicate features morphing into a frown.<p>

"Is something wrong mizukage-sama?" one of the three elders sitting in front of her spoke.

"No it's…" Mei trailed as she kept looking at her right soft palm- the swirling sign of the Uzumaki clan on her hand surrounding which were nine tails of red colour- was glowing a bride shade of yellowish-orange.

Her expression was that of concern as she pursed her lips.

'_Naruto-kun…did something happen again?'_

* * *

><p><span><strong>Valley of The End<strong>

* * *

><p>"W-What's going on?!" an Oto shinobi exclaimed, his eyes wide along with the others. Right in front of their eyes, Naruto's form had started gaining a white-ish hue.<p>

Soon his skin had started to glow white, the intensity of the luminescence increasing by each passing second while the hooded female standing in front of the blonde too was looking at him over her shoulder.

If anyone could see her expression through the darkness of her hood- it would be that of surprise.

'_This…does not make sense. Is he ascending again?'_ she thought, the glowing increasing slowly as now she had to shield her eyes- same case being with the other sound ninja.

Kabuto however was gritting his teeth, his eyes wide as dashed on the lake- towards where about a hundred of sound forces were standing in front of Naruto.

'_This…is just like before! During the invasion he glowed like this before his doujutsu was upgraded!'_

"DON'T JUST STAND THERE! KILL HIM QUICKLY BEFORE HIS REMAINING EYE UPGRADES ITSELF!" he yelled, nearing the sound nin as they looked back at him in surprise.

"I'm sorry but that is out of the question," the ice female user spoke calmly as she turned back to face the sound nin.

"Grrgh! Let's go you bunch of pussies! She's just one fucking kunoichi! Kill her and get that bastard!" one of them yelled as they all began to charge collectively. Most of them began to go through hand seals as they fired several water techniques in the form of water bullets, tendrils, pillars and dragons- it was an intimidating sight as the combined monstrous water attack neared the ice user at blurred pace- completely shadowing all of their forms due to the achieved height.

"My, that is indeed scary looking, but you're fighting me at the wrong location…" she whispered to herself, bending down as she dipped her hand in the violently moving water.

SHRKKK!

Soon, water began to turn into ice as the effect quickly travelled to the approaching water attacks just before they hit her- freezing them completely.

Meanwhile, Naruto's form had taken a full ethereal white glow- his head now slowly lifting as the blonde came to consciousness. His left eye opened lazily as he looked down at the water.

SPLASH!

Large amounts of water erupted upwards as Kabuto jumped out through the water surface behind him, a kunai clenched tightly in his right hand.

'_NOW YOU DIE!'_

'_Shit!'_ the ice user thought in alarm as she turned her head while the kunai approached the back of Naruto's head in slow motion- when the jinchuriki whispered to himself-

"**Shinra Banshou** (_All of Creation Covered by God_)"

The approaching kunai stopped just centimetres away from the back of his head- its tip grazing his glowing hair while Kabuto had his eyes widened.

'_I can't move…'_ the medic thought, floating in mid-air, his body still like a statue as if someone had paused the live action _just _before him stabbing Naruto with the kunai.

Even the ice female had her eyes widened in surprise.

"My God…this jutsu…." Her voice barely above a whisper.

Her mouth however opened a bit in shock when she noticed Naruto's face, especially his forehead.

"This can't be..."

'_It's too early'_ she thought to herself, not believing her eyes.

Naruto slowly turned, now looking at Kabuto when the silver haired medic too noticed his forehead, much to his surprise.

"What…are you?" he muttered in disbelief, struggling against the invisible force which was still holding him up in mid-air- the kunai in front of the blonde's closed right eye not moving at all.

A third vertical slit had opened in the middle of Naruto's forehead to reveal an eye- a Rinnegan to be exact. However, it was red in colour- unlike the blonde's Rinnegan in his left eye which was purple. Another major difference was that it had about four lines (_the fourth one barely visible_) in the form of concentric circles surrounding a black dot pupil- a total of nine visible tomoe surrounding the pupil- three in each line.

The jinchuriki just stared at Kabuto as it continued to rain, his third eye slowly closing until it showed nothing but clear forehead.

Fear was evident in Kabuto's eyes as he continued to struggle effortlessly against some invisible force.

"Let me…go," he growled through gritted teeth, his eyes squinted due to the glaring glow emanating from the whiskered blonde.

Naruto just stayed quiet as he stared at Kabuto with his lone left eye. His right eye now began to open, surprising Orochimaru's right hand man in front of him- to reveal the same red Rinnegan in his right eye socket.

'_What is going on here?!'_ Kabuto thought wide eyed as he gazed at the combination of a glowing purple and red Rinnegan, the first one having two concentric circles like before with the second one looking as if it was already fully matured.

A sigh escaped the blonde's lips as he kept staring into Kabuto's eyes.

…

"Yakushi Kabuto…or should I say, Shimura Danzo?"

This time the medic's pupils zoomed out in shock as Naruto spoke-

"Where are you hiding by the way?"

* * *

><p><strong>Well, I'm quite sure you guys were probably expecting to wait another year for this chapter lol. :P<strong>

**I was supposed to update 'The Burdened Deathcake' instead of this chapter this time, but I guess given the way most of you guys reacted, more like **_**panicked**_** after reading the previous chapter, I had to write this quickly.**

**It's kind of sad though- how quick readers are to jump to conclusions and take their frustrations out on the writer. Just doesn't gives enough freedom to the author to write what he wants- in fear of whether the readers will like it or not.**

**Anyway! Hope you like this chapter! :D**

**Thanks for all the reviews and PMs (I'll respond, just wait!) in the previous chapter. I greatly appreciate your support!**

**Next update is for 'The Burdened Deathcake'.**

**See you next time guys! Cheers! XD**

**N6023 **


End file.
